Going by what everybody has said on these forums about bears, you're unlikely to encounter one once you've gone a mile or two into the Whitney zone and very unlikely to encounter one at trail camp. You can, however, expect marmots to abound at trail camp.
While I do not advise that you bring a special can of marmot mace to deal with them, I can recommend the following to avoid unfavorable encounters with them.
Do not eat or keep scented items in your tent. If they smell anything interesting, they will chew through the walls to get it. On this point, keep food and scented items in a hard sided container-a bear cannister works, but might be overkill. Keep this outside of your pack while in camp.
I attempted Whitney last march. It was much harder than the hike up Alta peak, with camping gear, that I had done three months prior.
I think the main reason for this discrepancy is acclimation. I arrived in KC the night before the Alta Peak hike and camped at Grant Grove at >6000'.
The night before I slept at trail camp, I tried to squeeze in a few hours' sleep in the bay area ahead of the 7 hour U turn around the Sierra's south side the next day. After a night's sleep on the mountain I felt much better going into my summit push.
I recommend sleeping at altitude before you start the trip.
