Josh Hohm of Bozeman,Montana spotted a newborn moose calf while on a trip to West Boulder Campground. The mother of the baby was found dead nearby along with another calf, both believed to have died during childbirth.
Hohm wrapped the living calf in a blanket and took care of it and reported to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks for its rehabilitation. He was later shocked to hear that forest service officials shot her dead, then blew up the carcasses with explosives to scatter the remains.
Holm said that he was outraged and was saddened to see what his good intentions have led to.
When I left the animal in their care… very shortly after, they shot it in the head. They didn’t remove it from the premises, there were no tests taken, they simply waited for me to leave and they dispatched the animal.It’s just unbelievable to me that that’s how things are handled. It just sounds incredibly wrong.These guys are on our payroll to oversee the protection and well being of these animals and this is how we ‘manage wildlife.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks responded saying that they only followed protocol. Andrea Jones, spokeswoman of FWP said:
We don’t move or rehabilitate moose.We rehabilitate bears but we are not staffed to take care of animals that transmit disease.The dead animals were then dynamited so that they wouldn’t draw grizzly bears to the campground.We are not grim reapers; we are in this business because we care about animals.
In several other states, orphaned moose calves are often rehabilitated for release back into the wild with the help of private rehabs.
