A baby moose dropped in over his head this morning, when he got stuck in one of the concrete bowls at Breckenridge skatepark.
Not everyone earns a nickname the very first time they drop in. But this little guy did.
“We rescued our little ‘skater moose,’ as we’ve decided to call him,” Rachael Gonzalez with Colorado Parks and Wildlife tells Krystal 93.
Rec center patrons were the first to report a mama moose visibly agitated just after dawn. That’s when employees discovered her calf at the bottom of the skate bowl, curled up in a pile of crispy aspen leaves.
No one is quite sure how long he was there, but he was not going anywhere. The bowl is concrete, slick and more than six feet deep.
“For those that know skateboarding, they’re really only easily accessible by climbing out,” Gonzalez said. “Your moose can’t climb out in that way.”
The little guy wasn’t hurt, but wildlife officers did need to sedate him – and keep an eye on mama while they crafted a rescue plan.
“They watched her the entire time because, obviously, getting in between mom and calf is not always the smartest thing to do,” Gonzalez said. “They’re very protective of their babies.”
Officers used a winch and a pulley to safely lift the skater moose out of the bowl. With help from Breckenridge police and rec center employees, they then scooted the moose to a nearby playground and waited for mom to arrive. The baby stood up soon after and the two were reunited, safe and sound, before leaving the area.
But that nickname? It is with him for life.
“Far as I know, yes, this is our first skater moose,” Gonzalez said.
Images via Breckenridge Police Department on FB.