Covid 19 coronavirus: Taranaki farmer steps up creativity for viral teddy bear hunt

A Taranaki farmer has added some creative complexity to the nationwide teddy bear hunt currently going viral.

Bruce Nickel's teddy bear isn't at his front window; it's at the front of his Normanby property and prior to the country's lockdown, would have been a double take for motorists as they drove by.

However, it's still garnering interest online after he put a photo up on his Facebook page this week.

Taranaki Federated Farmers has also shared it, doing a shout out to other rural folk to see if they can compete with Nickel's creativity.

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Nickel said the bear only took him about 20 minutes to make. It had been at the front of his property for the past couple of weeks but he had to take it down the other day as its head fell off in high winds.

The hay bale creations are nothing new. He'd made all sorts for the past six or so years including a tractor and trailer, planes, cows and bulls

"I make one every year. Make them for the kids, grandkids seem to like it. It's good fun."

The teddy bear hunt was instigated by Debby Hoffman who started the page We're Not Scared - NZ Bear Hunt in a bid to get children to look out for bears in their community while getting exercise.

It's even caught the attention of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who yesterday said in her press conference that Kiwis were welcome to take children for walks in the neighbourhood for fresh air and suggested they try to spot teddy bears on the windows.

"They might look for teddy bears in windows but as they pass people, keep your distance, don't talk to others, just stay within your bubble," she said.

"And if you're in Wellington and you're walking in a local neighbourhood, you might see one in my window."

She's asked people across the country to put a teddy bear in their window and put a pin on the site's map so children can take part in a safe game while at a distance.

She earlier told the Herald more than 1000 people across the country have dropped pins so children can locate and tick off the teddies they've seen in different locations.

The Government has reiterated that, while it is asking to Kiwis to stay home as much as possible, people are allowed to go outside for walks and exercise, either on their own or with the people they are self-isolating with.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website