Old buddy Richie Kellogg — Big R — phoned Monday morning to renew a summer-long discussion about a rogue black bear that’s been frequenting his Wendell neighborhood.

The first time he called, in May or early June, he was concerned because this bear was injured, had destroyed his bird feeders and didn’t seem to be the least bit afraid of Kellogg, a big man who’d blend perfectly into a NFL locker roomful of offensive tackles. It probably wasn’t the smartest thing Big R ever did the day he approached the animal in his driveway, walked up to within 20 feet and spoke to it in a friendly manner.

“Hey Buddy,” he coaxed. “You’ve gotta go. Carol’s afraid of you.”

That’s when he saw what looked like something attached to the bear’s lower left leg, just above the paw, which the animal was holding off the ground.

“I would have liked to reach down and pull it out to help the poor thing out but I didn’t dare,” he said. “I felt sorry for it.”

Seemingly unaffected by the face-to-face encounter or being spoken to, the big bear just stood there on three legs looking at Kellogg, then growled when he tried to creep a little closer. The growl unnerved Kellogg, who’s battling disability to his once powerful right hand and wrist, so he slowly backed away onto his deck and went inside to safety. Since then, Big R, who thinks it’s a 250-pound bruin, has been keeping his eyes open whether visiting his garden or backyard pool. He has seen the animal only twice but knows it’s around because of the calling cards it leaves behind.

“I don’t know if I have anything to be worried about, but I wouldn’t want to get attacked,” he said. “I don’t know if I could fight it off.”

It seems likely that the protrusion Kellogg noticed on the bear’s lower leg is a compound fracture, either from an awkward jump or a collision with a vehicle. If it was a large sliver of some type, the animal would have pulled it free by now.

By Monday, the picture had changed dramticaly. Kellogg reported that he’s not the only person in his neighborhood nervous about the bear. Just down the road, Joel Sears has been aware of the animal’s presence for some time because it’s torn up his blueberries and garbage, once even jumping up to take garbage from the bed of his pickup truck. It got worse for Sears late last week when he returned home to discover his kitchen had been ransacked. The bear had torn open the cupboards and eaten muffins and whatever else it could find to satisfy its hunger.

Kellogg says Sears called MassWildlife to suggest that the bear be removed by authorities, but they offered little help, just advice to be alert and keep potential food inaccessible.

“I’ve been locking my door ever since I heard about it going in the house,” Kellogg said. “I’m afraid it’s gonna break into my place. He could push that door in easily unlocked. My wife thinks I’m crazy. I told her it would be wise to respect this animal. It’s no teddy bear, and it’s injured.”

The problems may not last much longer. Bear season opens on Sept. 6. Maybe someone will put this pathetic animal out of its misery.