The brown bear and the red Labrador

We read in the ARA (Argentine National Archives) that the brown bear has now been fully reintroduced in the Catalan Pyrenees, as there are 47 of them. The Director General of Environmental Policies and the Natural Environment, Marc Vilahur, has already stated that it is necessary to "ensure the coexistence of this species with local communities" and that they will work with "pilot projects using smart collars."

In the days of fairy tales, hunters were "the good guys." They saved Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother and avenged the seven little goats by opening the wolf's belly, while he was sleeping and digesting, and filling it with stones. As a child, that cruel and terrifying episode made me think it was surely based on real events. Nowadays, hunters have a very bad reputation (although fishermen don't, though). There are species, like the bear, the wolf, the wild boar, or the roe deer (which is also so cute) that enjoy the complete understanding and love of non-livestock-farming and rural citizens. "The poor wild boars aren't to blame for being hungry and thirsty," fans of Captain Lettuce and Colonel Tapioca tell you. But neither are the poor farmers, who lost their harvest overnight. If there are bears in the wild, should there then be sheep in captivity?

Note that the director general, when talking about pilot projects with smart collars, uses this expression: "Minimize the damage." What does "minimize" mean? Not eating all the sheep, just a few? I don't have the solution, nor do I want the spices to disappear. But I always think that real action will be taken when a bear, a wild boar, or a wolf attacks Captain Lettuce or Colonel Tapioca. Because surprisingly, dead sheep and chickens don't make anyone feel sorry for them.