About Bear Busters

Who we are, what we do, and why we do it

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The Bear Break-In Experts

Bear Busters was founded in Tahoe City, CA in 2009. We are Lake Tahoe’s #1 provider of bear deterrent solutions for residents dealing with bear break-ins. Our proprietary systems are designed to keep your home protected, your family safe and our bears wild. We were one of the first companies in the Truckee-Tahoe area to utilize electric fencing technology and we are constantly improving our systems with aesthetics and functionality as our top priority. We’ve protected over 1,000 homes around the Lake with amazing success.

We proudly service the following neighborhoods:

Truckee, Tahoe Donner, Donner Summit, Martis Camp, Lahontan, Squaw Valley, Alpine Meadows, Tahoe City, Homewood, Tahoma, Meeks Bay, Rubicon Bay, Carnelian Bay, Tahoe Vista, Kings Beach, South Lake Tahoe, Meyers, Camp Richardson, Echo Summit, Stateline, Kirkwood, Mammoth Lakes, June Lake, Bishop, Lee Vining, Bridgeport & beyond!

Why choose Bear Busters?

Bear Busters was founded by Ryan Welch in the summer of 2009 while working for a local hot tub service company. After witnessing several bear break-ins in the Truckee-Tahoe community, he devised a way to solve the problem with electric fences used by ranchers to control their livestock. Since that first installation, bear break-ins have steadily risen around Lake Tahoe and Bear Busters has maintained its excellence with innovative designs and top quality customer service.

Every home presents its own unique set of challenges, which is why we begin each job with a free consultation to determine your needs and come up with the best, most cost effective solution possible. First we’ll perform a comprehensive property inspection to identify all available access points. Next we’ll come up with a customized strategy to permanently protect your home. Finally, we’ll provide an estimate for your system and schedule a date for the installation.

We take pride in our work. That’s why we guarantee our materials and craftsmanship with a 2 year, no-questions-asked warranty for any broken components. In addition to our best-in-class warranty, we also perform annual maintenance check-ups on our systems for a small fee.

We’re Tahoe’s #1 source for all your bear deterrent needs. We specialize in:

More about Bear Busters

Who we are

We’re friendly, hardworking Tahoe residents who are passionate about finding innovative ways to solve bear problems. When we’re not protecting our neighbors’ homes from nosy bears, we can be found skiing, snowboarding, snowmobiling, hiking, or mountain biking somewhere in the Sierra Nevada.

What we do

We protect anything and everything bears try to access for food. Doors, windows, garages, decks, storage areas, crawl spaces, chicken coops, beehives, dumpsters… we can handle it all!

Why we do it

We love solving problems. Bear issues continue to worsen as our communities creep further and further into their natural habitat. The result is expensive and frustrating to everyone involved, including the bears. Our goal is simple – to keep bears wild and humans safe by preventing bears from accessing human sources of food.

Where we do it

Our primary focus was North Lake Tahoe and Truckee for the first few years but break-ins have been on the rise in recent years and we’ve responded by expanding our operations to South Lake Tahoe, Mammoth Lakes, and June Lake. We’re currently exploring ways to bring our services to other communities across the country that are experiencing similar issues and we are more than happy to design systems and sell products anywhere in the country.

Meet The Team

  • Ryan Welch

    Founder/President

    Ryan Welch was born in Visalia, CA and moved to Lake Tahoe in 2001. He’s in charge of Truckee, North Lake Tahoe, and South Lake Tahoe.

  • Matt Corcoran

    Lead Technician

    Matt joined the Bear Busters family in 2015. He’s in charge of the Eastern Sierra, including Mammoth Lakes and June Lake.

  • Zephyr

    Chairman

    Zephyr is the oldest member of our team, in dog years. He’s adapted his fur to mimic that of a black bear to keep our job sites secure.

  • Riley

    Intern

    Riley is young, but has learned the trade quickly. He’ll likely take over the company in the next few years.

What our clients say about us

  • I can't say enough about Ryan and his company Bear Busters. My house in Alpine Meadows Lake Tahoe was famous for all the bear break ins. I had tried everything to keep them out of my home. We tried Pine Sol, lights on, TV on, zero food, no garbage, clean garbage disposal, gosh the list could go on! It wasn't until Ryan contacted me thru a mutual contact that my house was finally protected! Ryan was professional and a true gem when it came to follow thru and follow up. I have not had any break ins since Ryan came to our rescue! I highly recommend consulting with Ryan at Bear Busters. Don't wait!
    Corrine A - Kentfield, CA
  • A bear tried to climb over the fence to eat our chickens early this morning and we heard it yell in surprise as it encountered the electric fence. It tried two or three times--sorry bear, no snacks for you here! Thanks again Bear Busters for setting us up with the materials and knowledge to keep our backyard hens safe in bear country for a year now!!
    Robin E - Meyers, CA
  • I can not thank Ryan enough for coming to my rescue after a bear got into my garage Friday night. After working all day, Ryan stopped by my house at 6pm to assess my situation and take necessary precautions if the bear were to return again the that evening. The root of my problem was the lock on my roll-up garage door was not working properly. Ryan fixed my garage door so it would lock. Is that in his job description? He also took the time to walk around my property and seek out problem spots. He boarded up a few sketch areas and laid an electric mat in front of garage. Last night, I was able to sleep easy knowing we had done everything we could to not allow bear access to food and deter away from my house. Ryan shared alot of helpful tips and his customer service was top notch! Thank you Ryan for going above and beyond for me! You rock!
    Sue W - Tahoe Donner, CA
  • Your Products Are Great, You Guys Are Teaching And Saving A Lot Of Bears From Getting Killed!!!
    Pat W - Lake Tahoe, CA
  • I cant thank you enough for what you have been doing. The proactive, instead of reactive approach is what we need. I'll call you tomorrow to introduce myself and touch base. Thanks again, it really matters and I just wanted you to know that.
    Mike R - Truckee, CA
  • Legit, dependable, quality work that gets results. Thank you.
    Randall L - South Lake Tahoe, CA