ASHEVILLE - Here she comes again. And there she goes.
Dolly, the bear with a penchant for breaking into homes, continues to elude the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission.
After a string of nine break-ins, including one incident that injured a woman, the N.C. WRC made the decision to put Dolly down. A viral campaign and petition that reached state leadership prompted the N.C. WRC to reverse that call, and officials decided Dolly could call the North Carolina Zoo home until a permanent home can be found for her.
Now trappers just need to find her. But Dolly seems to have their number.
She is exhibiting "trap shyness," "a learned avoidance behavior" in which a bear associates traps with an unpleasant event and learns to avoid similar devices or locations
going forward, said Anna Gurney, spokesperson for the N.C. WRC.
Dolly is keeping staff members working 9 to 5 and 5 to 9. They have been monitoring Dolly through reports from the agency's Human Wildlife Interactions hotline, and they have also deployed trail cameras in hopes of locating her.
Dolly has been seen with a cub, and if she is captured, state biologists will determine whether the cub is at a self-sufficient age to be moved to an undeveloped area, Gurney said. If the cub is not self-sufficient, it would go to a wildlife rehabilitation facility for cubs.
In the weeks after Dolly's situation was widely publicized, the N.C. WRC approved a rule that prohibits the feeding ofblack bears, as well as the placement of food that attracts bears, in Buncombe County.
In the text of the proposed emergency rule, the commission said the purposeful feeding of black bears in Buncombe County has resulted in "a significant threat" to human health and safety.
From May 1, 2026, through Sept. 30, 2026, the public and N.C. WRC staff reported 836 interactions with black bears in Buncombe County, with two injuries reported, according to data provided by the N.C. WRC Oct. 1. In the case involving Dolly, an injured woman had to receive medical attention at the hospital after the bear entered her home.
Kara Fohner is the Public Safety Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email her at kfohner@usatodayco.com or call her at 980-241-8671.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: NC has found a temporary placement for Dolly the bear. So where is she?
