Two juvenile moose were taken out from the Arbour Lake neighborhood in northwest Calgary by Alberta Fish and Wildlife due to an incident where one of them kicked a resident’s dog on Monday evening.
An official from Fish and Wildlife mentioned, “The resident had unknowingly let their dogs out in the backyard, where two moose calves, a male and a female both around 1.5 years old, were present. One of the dogs was kicked by a calf and suffered minor injuries.”
With assistance from the Calgary Fire Department, the moose were relocated on Tuesday. They were released near the Harold Creek wildlife corridor northwest of Cochrane.
Earlier in January, a similar occurrence involving a cow moose and her calf was reported. The pair was also removed from the Scenic Acres neighborhood in northwest Calgary and transferred to the Harold Creek wildlife corridor.
It was reported that the relocation was carried out after the mother moose displayed aggressive behavior towards a dogwalker who came between her and the calf.
Moose Sightings in Calgary
Wildlife biologist Sara Jordan-McLachlan, specializing in human-wildlife conflicts in Calgary, noted that moose are frequently spotted in natural habitats such as Fish Creek Provincial Park, Weaselhead Flats, and some suburbs in the northwest and southwest.
She mentioned, “In forested areas or near wetlands, moose sightings are more common compared to urban areas.”
Calgary is home to resident moose that breed within the city boundaries, as well as transient moose moving in and out of the city through wildlife passages in the Tsuut’ina Nation and other surrounding areas, as explained by Jordan-McLachlan.
According to iNaturalist, over 300 moose sightings have been reported in Calgary and its vicinity since 2020. The Calgary Connect wildlife monitoring program by the Miistakis Institute recorded 242 moose sightings within the city between 2017 and 2022, a small fraction of the total deer species sightings.
Jordan-McLachlan pointed out, “Moose may not be visible immediately but might return after people have left an area rather than completely vacating it.”
Based on the program’s recent findings, moose have the highest interaction with human activity among all wildlife species in Calgary, indicating that moose do not actively avoid areas frequented by people as much as other animals.
Jordan-McLachlan recommended refraining from engaging with moose of any age or gender, advising against approaching them and keeping dogs leashed.
If encountered, she suggested leaving the vicinity and providing ample space to the animal regardless of the time of year.
The wildlife monitoring program by the Miistakis Institute revealed that moose activity peaks from 6-9 p.m. and is lowest from midnight to 4 a.m.
