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Tonya Papanikolas ReportingA bull moose may be a beautiful sight to see, but can you imagine seeing it in your yard?
Karen Matheson, Witnessed Moose In Neighborhood: “We were having breakfast this morning and up in the house, and the moose came out of the backyard and walked down the front steps.”
Laura Matheson, Witnessed Moose In Neighborhood: “He was all, licking the salt off the street.”
Doug Matheson, Witnessed Moose In Neighborhood: “I grew up in this neighborhood and when my son came and said, ‘there's a moose in the yard,’ and I thought oh, yeah, right. I'm sure it's a deer. We look out and there's this thing as big as a horse out in the front yard. It was pretty amazing. I'd never seen one."
Karen Matheson: “We were surprised at how it wasn't alarmed very much. The cars would come by and it would move back onto the yard. When it came down to the house here and started nibbling on the neighbors' trees and stuff, it was kind of fun. An experience we'll probably never have again."
Wildlife officials say the moose was first spotted last night, but they had to wait until it was light to capture and tranquilize him.
The animal weighs about a thousand pounds so it took a group of people to carry him to the trailer on a tarp.
Sgt. Scott White, Division of Wildlife Resources: “He’s in good shape. Those that helped us lift him up could probably tell that. He’s a pretty big boy out there.”
Once safely inside the trailer, the moose was given a shot to reverse the drug. Then he was transported to the Jordanelle Reservoir where he was released. As the door was opened, he staggered out, but didn't run into the mountains. Instead, he slowly eyed his new surroundings, took a few steps and then ate a little snow.
Moose are not territorial, so he can be dropped off anywhere and survive pretty well. At Jordanelle he'll have a lot of open space, and enough to drink and eat, including snow.
