A university has banned students from preparing wild game in their dormitory kitchens after two students did exactly that with a black bear.
Cornell University in New York has published its undergraduate community living standards guidelines for the upcoming academic year, including updates regarding best practices in shared spaces.
Under section G, Cooking and Community Kitchens, the university has noted that “processing wild/game animals in community kitchens is strictly prohibited”, following an incident in a shared kitchen in 2025.
The kitchen was shut down and cleaned for 2 days
In September 2025, two students with New York State hunting licenses lawfully hunted and killed an adult black bear. One of the students, Aaron Chin, spoke to the MeatEater podcast and revealed that they had originally planned to process the meat at a friend’s house.
However, an emergency meant that this was no longer possible. Concerned that the meat would spoil, they elected to take it to their dorm room at Ganędagǫ Hall, where they skinned and butchered it.
A police call was made but no charges were brought against the students as the DEC found they had not impeded any regulations. They also faced no disciplinary action from the university as a result.
Cornell’s updated guidelines aim “to provide clarity regarding what is or is not appropriate to do in a communal kitchen space”, according to The Cornell Daily Sun.
For more on bears, check out our coverage of Japan’s “robot wolves” being used to scare off bears, or the “extremely intelligent” bear that escaped a factory by opening the window.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
