A brown bear in Italy has eluded capture for a third day following its escape from an electrified enclosure in a forested Alpine region.

It is not clear how the bear got past an electrified fence, then scaled a nearly four-metre high barrier.

Days earlier, the bear had been captured by forest rangers after attacks on livestock.

The brown bear has eluded capture for a third day (Autonomous Province of Trento via AP)

Environment minister Sergio Costa tweeted “Don’t shoot”.

He wants to avoid a replay of the 2014 death of a bear caused by a tranquilizer dart after the animal had attacked a mushroom hunter in the same region.

Elsewhere on Twitter, many Italians rooted for the bear.

The bear triggered sensor photos on Tuesday, showing it was not far from the Casteller di Trento Centre where it had escaped.