Bear damages Goshen barn, pushing walls off foundation

GOSHEN, Conn. (WFSB) - A bear climbed through a window of a barn at Spindle Brook Farm Thursday morning and pushed two walls off their foundation, the farm’s operator said.

Russ Murdock said he discovered the damage during his morning walk to the barn. “My brain could not even register what I was looking at,” Murdock said. The interior wall of his office was bulging more than a foot off the foundation. The exterior wall, which had plugs and wires running through it, had also separated from the foundation.

“He just came in here and slammed back and forth in here so much he ended up pushing both walls out,” Murdock said.

Murdock estimates repairs to both walls will cost $100,000. He said he has insurance but is concerned the damage could happen again. DEEP was setting up a bear trap at the farm Thursday.

The barn sits next to the stables where Spindle Brook Farm boards several horses. Murdock said his 5-year-old grandson, Cameron, often spends time in the area where the bear entered. “I don’t want him to grow up to be afraid to go outside,” Murdock said.

Murdock said he believes a bear hunting season is the only long-term solution. “The only solution is to have a season. The bears would benefit so much from a hunting season,” he said.

Bear hunting is a contested issue in Connecticut. Some lawmakers have cited opposition to hunting in general, or argued that people securing their food and garbage is the root solution. A bear hunting bill has not passed the legislature, despite experts at DEEP advocating for one.

State Senate Minority Leader Stephen Harding, a Republican who represents Goshen, said he plans to again push for a bear hunt when the legislature reconvenes at the start of the new year. “The biologists will tell you that we’re going to control the population and instill some level of fear in the bear to have these human interactions,” Harding said.

Harding added that colleagues appear more open to the idea following recent bear encounters. “They are certainly open to re-exploring this issue in the next legislative session, which I think is a positive sign,” Harding said.