“This likely was an incident of a cow protecting her calves.” –Wildlife Manager Matt Yamashita
A 79-year-old woman was attacked by a moose and severely injured in a rural area outside a home south of Glenwood Springs, Colorado last Friday night. She was rushed to a local hospital and then transported to helicopter to another hospital on the Front Range later that same night.
CBS4 reports the woman was dog sitting for one of the tenants living at the home. She had seen a cow moose and its two calves in the yard earlier in the day. When the woman no longer saw the moose later that evening, she believed it was safe to be outside. That’s when she took the dog out on a leash in the yard and she was attacked. Another resident of the home saw the moose stomping on the victim.
“The incident occurred in an area of quality moose habitat and it is known that the moose frequent this area year-round. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the woman. This incident was no fault of her own. Conflicts with moose can happen, even when you follow best practices for living in moose habitat.” –Wildlife Manager Matt Yamashita
Colorado Parks and Wildlife said the cow and its two calves have reportedly been in the area for an extended period of time without incident and no previous aggressive behavior was reported. Wildlife officers searched the area for the cow and its calves using photos and videos of the moose from residents taken the day of the attack to try to identify physical characteristics or traits that could be used to differentiate the correct animal involved.
Wild animals will always be – WILD.
