Bear breaks into Lake Mary home, searches for food

Homeowner says bear headed straight for pot filled with turkey oil

LAKE MARY, Fla. – A bear crashes a Seminole family's Christmas and it was all caught on camera.

It's just the latest bear in a series of close encounters the past few weeks in Central Florida.

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The bear was caught breaking into the back patio of a home on Redwood Grove Terrace in Lake Mary in search of a late-night snack.

At first, Tramaine Gaines thought it was burglar breaking in his house, but then he saw the bear pressed up against his sliding patio door.

Gaines told WKMG-TV the bear came through his screen and headed straight for a pot filled with turkey oil.

"He bust through and came to this can where he thought a turkey was," said Gaines. "He stood up on his hind legs when he stood up on his legs he was as tall as me."

WATCH:  Video of bear encounter

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said bears can smell food from a mile away and will eat almost anything as they pack on extra calories before winter.

Gaines said it'll take a couple hundred dollars to fix the damage, but that's a cheap price to pay for a lesson learned.

"The bear was just being a bear at the end of the day. If you have food out they're gonna find it," said Gaines. "We have to coexist even if it gets a little rough sometimes."

FWC said its important to lock up not only your food, but your pet's food too. Make sure to take out your trash the morning of pickup instead of the night before.