A moose that apparently lost its footing on steep terrain in Boulder Canyon Monday tumbled off a cliff into a rockslide and ended up breaking both of its back legs.
A video of the fall went up on social media shortly after the giant animal took its tumble. It shows the moose — a young bull — lying crumpled in the middle of Colorado 119. As other vehicles passed it, including the bus from Boulder to Nederland, some passengers couldn’t make out what it was. One ninth grader told her mother a giant boulder had ripped loose from the canyon wall (which is not unheard of).
But something other than the moose stood out in the video — two women who got dangerously close to the animal while crouching near it, trying to comfort it.
The bull lay there until Colorado Parks and Wildlife authorized Colorado State Patrol to euthanize it, said CPW spokesperson Kara Van Hoose in an email. “When wildlife is injured, the main indicator of recovery we look for is mobility. If the animal can move around on its own, it can find food and have a higher chance of survival. This moose was not able to stand due to its broken legs. The humane thing to do in that situation is euthanization.”
As for the women trying to soothe the injured moose?
“In general, people should always avoid coming close or approaching wildlife for everyone’s safety,” Van Hoose said. “They are unpredictable. The same holds true for when wildlife are injured. They are still unpredictable and there’s still a safety risk in approaching them.”
This makes the 13th moose to die in an accident this year, she added.
CPW said it processed the moose and donated the meat.