The Tale's Conclusion

Well, our time with the baby moose, Morris, has come to an end.

Last weekend, Chad & I drove him to Smithers, where he can grow up with limited human contact, in a large free-range area that will make him more likely to be able to be released to the wild.

The people at the Rupert shelter gave us a thick black plastic sheet to line the back of our truck, and sleeping bags to cover that. Then the woman at the shelter prepared a bottle for him, and I gave it to him before we left. Then they helped us load him into the back of our truck, gave us another bottle and some willow leaves for the trip, and we headed out.

Anyway, a few hours, and one speeding ticket later, we made it to Smithers in one piece. And boy, was Morris glad to get out of that truck! The put him in a smaller outdoor pen, surrounded with a wire fence. They use that while the animals are young, and still need to be bottle fed. We got to go in and spend some time with him, and say good-bye. He was doing well - he adjusted with NO problem to the "formula" they use. Then we had a brief tour of some of their property- including seeing their resident cougar - and got back in the truck to head out.

As we pulled away, I saw that Morris ran the length of his pen, trying to follow after us! It was so heartbreaking.

I have no doubt that he will do well in his new home, and I hope that I'll get to see him again once he's all grown up. It was an amazing experience, and I will cherish the memories I have with him for a long time.