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age. He suggested that farmers could fence their com or orchards.
Mr. Bankston said that bears do most of the damage to com when it is in the “milk stage,” but farmers frequently don’t notice the damage until they are harvesting the com, and by then the bears are gone. “It’s a cyclic thing, ” he added.
Hampton District representative Mike Massie said he had checked his com when it was in the “milk stage” and found no damage, but that now when the com is getting harder he is finding damage. “I personally am fattening nine bears,” he said.
“Most farmers expect to share a certain amount of their crops with wildlife,” Mr. Massie said. “This year the bears are taking more than their share.”
Mr. Estes said farmers should be able to kill bears that are damaging their livestock the same as they can shoot a neighbors dog who is killing livestock. “I don’t see why a bear should enjoy any more right to life than a neighbor’s dog,” he said.
Newbill Miller said the law requires the game warden to issue a permit to shoot the bear if it is damaging crops. Commonwealths Attorney Peter Luke agreed that the law says that, but added the Code of Virginia frequently contains conflicting laws and added he could not agree with Mr. Miller’s claim without further research.
The supervisors asked Mr. Luke to draft an addition to the county’s
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