Jack claims, "This land is my land!"

Jack is a member of the Gibbons family in West Milford, New Jersey. Guess I should mention that Jack is a tabby cat - not a human member of the family. Although Jack may not agree with that remark.

Back to Jack. He's very possessive of his territory, both inside the house and the outside property. Louise Gibbons, the lady of the house, says Jack frequently chases small animals off the property and she sometimes helps Jack, using her broom. It's the Gibbons' property, so this is not a problem.

This story is not, however, a story about property rights or eminent domain. Rather, it's about Jack's habit of running off small wild animals. But in Jack's case, we're not talking about iddy- biddy wild animals like squirrels and such. Rather we're talking about bears! That's right, I said bears, like Smokey without any clothes on!

This is one of those days when "Jack is on duty," Louise Gibbons is quoted in the local newspaper, the Star-Ledger . Louise hears a commotion outside and finds that Jack has forced a black bear to climb a tree in their back yard.

After about 15 minutes the bear gets up enough courage to climb back down the tree, but Jack- still on duty- chases the bear back up another tree. It must have been Jack's hissing that freaked out the bear.

It was only after Louise took Jack back inside the house that the bear dared come back down from his safe perch. Then the bear quickly evacuated the Gibbons', or, should I say, Jack's property, never again to return.

According to the New Jersey Star- Ledger , bear sightings are not unusual in the area of West Milford in north central New Jersey, which experts say is one of the Garden State's most bear- populated areas.

Give Jack- the- Cat half a chance, and the bear population in Milford may become seriously diminished.

CallTheCops@sc.rr.com