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A black bear was spotted around 12:30 p.m. today near the intersection of Hopedale and Dutcher Streets, police said.
Police said someone was running in the parklands section of town and spotted the bear near a bath house on the trail near those streets. The runner and the bear startled each other, police said. Police said the bear showed no signs of aggression.
Police are hanging signs in the area and urging residents to take down their bird feeders and cover their trash cans.
Last Friday, a large, adult male bear was spotted on Lynn Court in Bellingham going through backyards, said Franklin and Bellingham Animal Control Officer Tracey Taddeo.
Taddeo thinks there is more than one bear roaming around the area because last Thursday, another bear was spotted in Bellingham, but it only looked to be about a year old. Taddeo said a few Franklin residents called officials about bear sightings Sunday and Monday, and there is no way a bear could get from Franklin to Hopedale in only a few days.
People should keep an eye on their dogs, Taddeo said, because if they approach a bear, the bear will defend itself. Otherwise, the bears are not meat eaters, said Taddeo.
"They aren't interested in eating cats or humans,'' said Taddeo. "They're interested in sweets, bird seed, berries. They'll go through your trash looking for jelly or twinkies or HoHos."
Anyone who sees a bear should contact Hopedale Police at 508-634-2227 or the state Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at 508-389-6300.
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