In the 19th century, the profession of bear handler emerged in Ariège and many residents began capturing bears to train them and display them in shows. This profession has crossed the Atlantic and made the reputation of the department.
Bear handlers making the animal dance in the United States in 1900.
It’s a story that many don’t know: bear handlers have made Ariège’s reputation in the United States. This profession dates back to the Middle Ages and was originally practiced by the Gypsies, but it began to emerge in Europe in the 19th century, particularly in Ariège. The inhabitants of two Ariège valleys, those of Alet (Ustou) and Garbet (Aulus-Ercé-Oust), who lived in difficult conditions at the time, began practicing this activity to try to escape the misery.
Some Ariégeois therefore begin to hunt bears to capture and train them. The profession of bear taming quickly became a small industry and the village of Ercé even opened its bear training school. Once trained, the bears are then exhibited in public squares, with a muzzle, and most of the time perform circus acts. These “shows” are first performed in France before being exported to Spain or England.
Bear trainers even go as far as Scotland while others try America, heading for Canada, the United States, but also South America. The nearly 600 bear showmen from Ariège who crossed the Atlantic have enjoyed great success and the animal has become a real star. The bear often made the front pages of New York newspapers between the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Ariégeois, who set out on an adventure, thus manage to earn a much better living in the United States than in France.
After having amassed enough money, Ariège bear handlers returned to French soil to buy land while others preferred to stay in the United States where they were recruited by circuses, for example. But the profession suffered a hard blow in 1921 with the ban on wild animal shows on public roads. Ariégeois therefore retrain locally or return to France.
After being completely exterminated, the reintroduction of bears from Slovenia was a great success. Bears that found the natural habitat suitable for them grew rapidly. They constitute a stable population which is concentrated in the areas which they formerly occupied.
The problem is that breeders who raise their animals in high-altitude summer pastures no longer have the time or the will to live with their herds as in the past. The bears take advantage of this to catch some animals.
Friction between ranchers and conservationists has reached a fever pitch, and pressure appears to be mounting further as the bear population grows.
The two populations confronting each other today are:
- Breeders and the local population (holders of all electoral positions) who only consider the predation done to their herds. Despite the prevention measures put in place, there is no miracle solution. We must learn to coexist with the bear. The distress of breeders who suffer predation is all the more a problem as breeding is the main resource and one of the only activities in the country.
- Environmentalists and those who want to preserve nature who consider that the bear has its place in a habitat that was its own.
Things are changing slowly but it is a sensitive subject that is best not discussed in the region.
Bears have made many families rich and proud of their past. Today, they have become the ultimate predator that unites sheep and cattle farmers and the majority of the local population against them.
