“Beary Christmas!”
The holidays are going to be a little less merry and a lot more hairy for the Altadena man with a 550-pound bear living under his house.
“You don’t really feel like having people over when there’s a big creature under your house,” explains Ken Johnson — who has had his unwanted roommate for more than three weeks.
Johnson tells The Post he’s canceled his usual pot-luck Christmas party, though he jokes he’s considered asking guests to BYOB — “bring your own bear.”
“Unbearable” named by Johnson’s friends emerges briefly from his new home. Ken J Johnson Photography and DesignJohnson said living with the bear has him feeling like the Grinch. “I’m not going to decorate, I’m not in the mood.” That means no tree, no lights, no mistletoe. Bah humbug!
However, Johnson said he will have the stockings hung; one for him, his cat Boo, and one for the bear.
“I hope the message has got to Santa that he was a bad boy, bring him some coal because if he got sardines he may like that,” said Johnson. “Boo will get some of those temptation treats or a toy mouse because he’s been good.”
Johnson admits he does have one special present for the bear: noise.
“I have three CD players playing the sounds of dogs barking, bears don’t like dogs. They’re different dogs, some are barking some are growling.”
Ken Johnson will be spending Christmas with a bear. Derek Shook for NY PostThe bear, nicknamed “Unbearable” by Johnson’s friends, arrived at his home Nov. 30 and has been an uninvited guest ever since.
The bear continues to wake up Ken at five in the morning, and has destroyed the hardware below his home. “I wake up, toss and turn and then I think I hear something, is he under my bed? Last night I didn’t get much sleep.
“It’s messing stuff up under the house. That’s going to cost money,” he noted.
“I’m waiting for the other paw to drop,” exclaimed Johnson.
Officials from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife have worked tirelessly and around the clock to get the bear off the property. Their first attempt was using scent spray, which omits the aroma of cherries and caramel. It may smell good to bears, but not to Johnson.
“It smells really bad. It’s not something you would want to put all together. It makes me nauseous, it’s so strong.”
Follow The Post’s coverage of the bear that’s living under an Altadena man’s house
- Man living with giant bear under his home threatens to sue officials — ‘They should deal with it’
- A 550-pound bear has been living under my house — and it doesn’t want to leave
- Calif. bear trap catches wrong beast as man endures 550-pound creature living under his house
- Officials try bizarre ways to lure 550-pound bear from underneath Calif. home
The second plan of attack was to bring a box trap filled with the bear necessities — fried chicken, sardines, shrimp, peanut butter and apples. The trap was successful, but it didn’t catch the right bear, snagging another neighborhood bruin.
“There was a big click and a bang!” explained Johnson
The healthy male black bear, aged around three or four years old, was later released to a “nearby suitable habitat,” CDFW spokesman Cort Klopping said.
The wrong bear gets caught in a trap set for the bear living under Johnson’s home. Fish and GameJohnson said he doesn’t expect the CDFW will be around during the festive season to drink eggnog with him. “They’ll probably take the holiday off,” he said.
“The biologists get time off for Christmas,” added Koppling. “If there was an emergency they’d jump into action, so hopefully Ken doesn’t see them.”
Since news of the Altadena bear broke, Johnson’s been bombarded by camera crews, news helicopters, photographers, and lookie-loos all trying to get a glimpse of the animal.
All the attention seems to have spooked the bear.
Ken J JohnsonThe frustrated homeowner does know exactly what he wants for Christmas: “I want the the bear to leave, as cute as he is it’s definitely time to go. It would be a Christmas miracle.”
And he has a special wish for Santa. “I’d like him to come out during Christmas Day while it’s light out, so I can get a good picture and share it with everyone. That would be a Beary Merry Christmas.”






