An orphaned moose killed by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks officials with explosives has many people upset, mainly Josh Hohm, the man, who first found the animal. However, the experts are defending their decision saying that the moose was potentially carrying an illness – but the truth is that they never tested the creature before killing it.
An orphaned moose killed by employees of the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Services has sparked an intense debate, and the killing makes no sense to many.
On Monday, Josh Hohm went to the West Boulder Campground, which is located in the Gallatin National Forest to camp for one night. While setting up his camping gear, the Bozeman man was startled when a newborn moose calf walked right up to him.
Hohm stayed away from the little moose thinking that the mother was nearby and would soon attack him to protect its young one. When he realized that the moose calf was not going anywhere, he decided to help it find its mother.
He eventually found the remains of the mother and the twin’s calf. The mother died while giving birth. Hohm told local media:
“Clearly I’m not going to leave the little guy there.”
Hohm took several pictures with the orphaned moose and filmed it crying. The camper did the logical thing and contacted officers from the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks thinking that they would care for the newborn moose. Hohm was wrong. According to Examiner, other states would have handled the matter differently by providing care to the orphaned moose.
Officers killed the orphaned moose and then U.S. Forest Service blew up all three bodies with explosives to scatter the remains so they would not attract predators like bears to the camping site. Saddened and angered by the officials’ decision, Hohm said:
“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.'”
The nature lover asked why didn’t they find a rehabilitation center for the young moose and later release it in the wild, but FWP spokeswoman Andrea Jones said the agency had no other option. “We don’t move or rehabilitate moose,” Jones explained.
Jones went on to share the reason they killed the little creature it was because the mother moose had an arterial worm, which could sicken other animals. Jones revealed:
“Nobody ever wants to have to deal with putting down a young animal, those who wish to help animals need to recognize that sick animals can translate disease to humans.”
According to Jones, another reason to blow up the moose, is the fact that it would not have been able to feed itself without its mother.
The man fired back by saying that they did not even test the orphaned moose before killing it. He stated that if he knew what they had planned for the poor creature he would have never called for help. The campground is currently closed to the public. The Inquisitr claims that this “standard protocol” is quite shocking.
What are your thoughts on this controversy? Did officials handle the situation properly?
