Moose Charge! Oh Heck! Here you go...

Jesse

Jesse

Member
BEAR SPRAY SAVES THE DAY!​
There has been a large bull moose hanging around our road and driveway due to the deep snow and the fact that there is little browse for him to eat, anywhere. The moose in our area have been suffering for weeks because the heavy snowfalls have covered their food; they like the thin young tips of willow and the many other types brush that fill in any open space in Alaska. A local conservation organization has been setting up feeding lots for them to help them survive. We have had several moose hanging out in our yard lately eating the two downed Aspen trees the satellite TV guy cut down for a clear shot at the satellites.



This morning at 5:00 AM I chased the big bull down the driveway and out our road with my truck on my way to work, all the way out to the highway and then across it, about one mile from the house. I hoped he would find a new place to hang out over there. This evening when I came home from work he was in our road and again and I had no choice but to chase him with the truck all the way back into our circular driveway.


After having dinner I went out on the front porch with a glass of wine to converse with my sweetheart who was sitting there enjoying the evening sun. “I wonder if the moose is still over there on the other side of the driveway” I asked. “I thought of going over there to check, but decided against it” she said.


Being the curious sort I hunted up one of my cans of bear pepper spray and with my faithful Labrador retriever Tula in tow trundled through the snow in my house slippers to the back of the circular drive. Tula was having a great game of going with me, tossing her rag toy into the air, spinning around with it and running back. We just reached the far corner with Tula in front by a few yards when she made an abrupt turn and ran past me butt-tucking towards the house. I loosed the safety on the bear spray and started retreating backwards but within a second I saw the moose about five yards away running towards me. There was no place to turn for refuge! The snow banks on either side of the driveway were eight feet tall vertical and the driveway was slick under the recent light snow. There was no snow bank to dive in to, no place to hide. The moose, seven feet high at the shoulders came at me, head down, ears straight back, neck and hump hackles straight up, eyes black with anger.


I quickly discharged the bear spray backing away as fast as I could. I was afraid to run and possibly slip and fall under the charge. The moose did not stop its run, head down in full gallop. “I’m dead meat” I thought. It was all happening so fast! I kept the valve down full on the bear spray directly into the face of the behemoth and just knew in the next micro second I would be severely slashed by his sharp hooves. I saw a glimpse of myself on the hospital stretcher being wheeled into the emergency room. He charged to within about two arm lengths of me and suddenly stopped! The bear spray had taken effect! I’ll never forget the image of his huge brown being, angry eyes dark, neck hackles standing high, feet in full gallop!


I turned and ran losing one slipper in the snow, then the other, and actually thought of going back to get them, but in an instant of better judgment kept my feet in high throttle! I didn’t even feel the cold of the snow as I sailed up the driveway, the steps, breached the porch and into the house! I am amazed that I survived the encounter! So many people in Alaska have not been so lucky. I owe it all to the bear spray that I so casually hunted up before going to “check on the moose.”


Let it be known that the bear spray lingers in the air long after and if you or anybody else around has respiratory problems keep them away from the area of discharge. My wife and I were still feeling the effects of the spray a half an hour later, washing it out of our systems with several glasses of water.
 
Geewiz Jesse, I didn't know you could move that fast. :>) :>) Amazing what a bit of motivation will do for a guy. I guess a new can of pepper spray is on Laura's shopping list now. I sure am glad it all worked out ok.
 
Thanks Dave, yea we are now buying a few extra cans. I like to go jogging in the early mornings on our road and will be comforted by the weight of it banging in it's harness on my chest!
 
Great story, Jesse. Nothing quite as lethal as the front leg hoof of a moose. It brought back a flood of memories with the same thing happening mostly when I was hunting or fishing. Back in the 60s we had a winter with a very heavy snow fall and many moose died of starvation. Sounds like that will and or is happening again. It was my job to shag moose off the playground prior to the kids going out for recess break at North Star Elementary in Anchorage.
Al
 
I've read that walking with a dog in moose territory can be dangerous because the moose sees the dog as a threat (wolf, coyote) then charges the dog, who in return runs back to it's owner for safety, bringing the charging moose with it.
 
Moose are funny creatures... Deadly when annoyed, glad to hear that bear spray worked for you.

I have had occasion to consider using bear spray on a moose licking the salt off my car... She wouldn't leave and I wasn't about to go anywhere near her and her calfs and it was getting cold. I decided to wait it out, and got a free car wash instead. Another time, we got a "Security advisory email" from our campus police stating that a bull moose had broken through a glass door and was last seen wandering the halls of our science building (in Calgary not OKC).

Like I said, funny creatures, best avoided, unless marinaded and grilled.
 
Jessie
That is a scarey story--glad you won. I would have lost more than my slippers :)
wis boz
 
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Amen brother AMen!! Im glad your ok that would put softies in your pjs for sure.....run forest RUN!!!!!
 
Bear hunting in ME last year I ended up standing between a cow moose and her calf on my way out after dark. A few tense moments for sure.
 
Wow...glad to hear the outcome wasn't a trip to the hospital. Being a flatlander and not knowing anything about moose my family and I were fishing a high mountain lake in Colorado some years ago. I heard a rustle in the saplings behind me. I turned to look but saw nothing. I heard it again and when I turned there was the head of a cow moose staring at me though the leaves not more than 10 or 15 feet behind me. I stood there what seemed a very look time looking at her when I noticed a calf come up to her side. At that point she snorted and what sounded like a paw at the ground. I backed up very slowly and got to the trail I had walked to the lake on and got to the parked truck. Later that day we stopped at a state forest information site. The park ranger was giving a safety speech on what to watch for in moose behavoir. I told him about my encounter and he told me that a cow with a calf that I was very fortunate not to be a statistic. I now have a better understanding and much more respect for these critters.
 
You are right, never, I say never, approach a moose with a dog in tow. A moose only has two enemies in the animal world, bear and wolves. It is in their DNA to attack both bear and wolves. It was indeed foolish of me to bring Tula with me on the moose check out. It was also foolish of me to even go down the driveway to look for the moose. If it had been a Grizzly like the one that came to our house last spring I would never have gone out to "look." Moose are indeed lethal and not to be overlooked as such, even though they do not look lethal.
Thanks for the congratulations on being here today! I am thankful. Laurie reminded me of how determined I was to find the bear spray before going down the driveway to "see". It is something that I would not normally do. So I leave you all with the question: who stopped the moose?
Jesse
 
Brilliant tale Jesse, very glad you came away with nothing more that a tale to tell. Think you were very lucky. Thanks for sharing. Felt like I was in the snow with you.
 
My friend you have just scared the tar nation out of me!

Bear spray does work on anything that breathes, though.
 
thanks for the story. That is not something you hear every day.

One thought on the pepper spray. It always amazes me when I hear of cops intentionally spraying each other or tazing one another just so they "know how it feels"....I ask them, do you shoot one another too?

So, your recollection of 1/2 hour later still feeling the effects says a lot about that stuff. Glad it worked.
 
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