LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – Living in bear country makes it a necessity to ward off black bears, either by hazing or preventive behaviors like properly cleaning and closing trash or locking up your home. But when a bear enters and finds your pantry or fridge an easy source of food, what can you do to keep them from breaking in? Electric shocks delivered through bear wires, mats and bungee cords are a solution—and one that Ryan Welch of Tahoe Bear Busters pioneered.

Bear wires, mats and bungee cords all operate in the same way. They act as conductors for an electric current which is delivered when contact is made. The current can be switched on or off and won’t flow through insulators like the rubber soles of most shoes. Welch, a licensed electrician, clarified that they use a pulsating, high voltage and low amperage electricity through the energizer.

“Most people don’t realize it’s the amperage that’s dangerous, but we use low amperage,” said Welch. “There’s a pulse of electricity for a fraction of a second, it makes a really unpleasant experience for the bear and makes it less likely that they’ll come back to the property.”

The brief shock is often enough to deter bears without causing them permanent damage—the same goes for people who have forgotten to turn off the charge. “We’ve never gotten reports of a person having to go to the hospital,” said Welch.

The concept is the same as what ranchers use for electric fences, so Welch says there’s a very low risk of them causing fires. “They have this same stuff out in these fields, touching the brush, but because of the type of electricity used, it doesn’t generate much heat.”

Welch says that the technology is safe for people, pets and poses no risk of fire.

The wires or bungee cords (which contain a conductor threaded through them) are usually stretched across a window or entrance, then affixed to a hook that allows them to be removed. They’re more affordable and there’s no need to worry about snow stopping their conductivity. But for frequently used entrances, it can be a hassle to turn the electricity on and off and have to remove the bungee cords.

On the other hand, the bear mats, which Welch invented in 2010, are laid in front of an entrance or garage. They conduct electricity but can be safely walked over with shoes, making them ideal for entrances that people frequently come in and out of. However, Welch says he typically installs them only in covered areas. “In the winter, the snow can act as an insulator and so the mat won’t deliver a shock.” Tiny animals are also liable to get a shock when they run over it, though Welch says he’s only ever seen small lizards die from contact on the mat.

Welch says he does a lot of work on the north and west shore, though he has some technicians on the south shore as well. He says he’s done 5,000 to 6,000 properties and that his primary clients have been vacation homes.

While there is a price to installation, Welch says he thinks it’s worth it. “It’s a $3,000 system. You can’t even replace your front door nowadays for less than that cost.” Setting up a single bear mat is roughly $400, including setting up the energizer, but Welch treats bear break-ins the same way he treats human break-ins.

“If you were going to secure your house against a burglar, you wouldn’t just put a lock on one door—you would secure all the entrances and doors to make sure they couldn’t come in,” said Welch. But there is one key difference he recognizes between bears and burglars: bears aren’t people.

Welch says that he began creating these deterrents because “nobody made the product [he] wanted, something that was tailored to houses.” But he says that education and human responsibility is the real way to ensure that people can live in the same environment as bears, without conflict.

“If you can’t be responsible enough to lock up your home, lock up your trash, you cannot blame a bear. There’s an emotional component to any break-in, but if you put aside your emotions, you realize that the bear is following its instincts,” said Welch. “It’s up to us to secure our places and food sources, which makes it less likely that these bears will be trapped and killed.”

Welch began developing an improved bear mat, which released in 2023 and have electrical conducting rubber rather than a metal top sheet. He says that manufacturing these products is the part that he enjoys the most of his job and has sold his products to many different clients, including organizations.

Welch’s bear mats are available on loan from both the BEAR League and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. If your property has been broken into and you’re seeking a temporary solution for bear deterrents, you can contact either of them. “The more we can let people know about it, the better,” said Welch.

You can also see what options Welch’s company, Tahoe Bear Busters, offers at their website: https://www.tahoebearbusters.com/

Eli Ramos is a reporter for Tahoe Daily Tribune. They are part of the 2024–26 cohort of California Local News Fellows through UC Berkeley.