SAN LUIS OBISPO - The black bear saga is over for San Luis Obispo and it's not the happiest of endings.
Federal wildlife officers and killed the persistent animal, Tuesday night.
The bear was given many changes, but it wouldn't take the hint.
When it tried to break into another chicken coop, a difficult decision was made.
"We woke up this morning and we just feel deflated, just sad," said Maggie King, a San Luis Obispo resident.
The infamous black bear with a hunger for chickens is dead.
A wildlife officer with the USDA shot and killed the animal as it broke into Maggie King's chicken coop.
"We're really sad about the bear," said King. "We just wish it had gone differently."
The Kings believe the bear had visited their backyard every night for the last two weeks.
On Monday, it ate five of the family's chickens.
"Night before last we heard them squawking, went up and it had actually pulled up part of the wall," said King.
Before that the bear had torn into at least three other coops on the edge of the city.
Since then, two property owners requested permits that allow wildlife owners to euthanize problem bears.
"There were quite a few people in this neighborhood that continued to express concern about safety issues in that area," said Lt. Todd Tognazzini, Department of Fish and Game.
A trap was set up, but the bear didn't take that bait.
It wanted more chickens.
"Unfortunately the bear had developed bad, bad behavior and although it doesn't hurt our overall bear population, people feel that empathy and it's something in this case that had to happen," said Lt. Tognazzini.
A necropsy was performed on the bear.
It was a male, three or four years old, weighing 200 to 250 pounds.
Wildlife biologists are confident it was the right bear because they found chicken feathers in its stomach.
In the past, Fish and Game has trapped and relocated bears, but it's often unsuccessful.
Authorities say the bears either find their way back or do damage elsewhere.
The euthanized bear was buried in a rural part of San Luis Obispo County.
