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RINGWOOD, N.J. – A frightened bear cub got its head stuck in an oversized cookie jar while rummaging through some trash and had to be rescued from a tree.

Environmental Protection Department spokesman Larry Ragonese says the 6-month-old cub apparently found the cookie jar Friday night in Ringwood, near the New York border.

As the 28-pound (13-kilogram) animal tried to eat what remained in the jar, he apparently pulled it over his head and it got stuck.

This undated photo provided by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection shows a bear cub that got its head stuck in an oversized cookie jar. AP Photo/NJ Department of Environmental Protection

The cub became spooked when approached and went up a tree, but got wedged about 40 feet (12 metres) up.

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Environmental protection staffers arranged netting in case the bear fell to the ground. After the animal was tranquilized by a department biologist, it was brought down and local firefighters gingerly cut the jar off its head.