Mark Skage found the small animal next to a road and, seeing that his mother was not around to defend him from the predator, he decided to put him in the truck of the company he worked for to save him.
A Canadian oil company fired one of its employees after he stopped in the middle of a road to rescue a female moose calf that was being stalked by a black bear, reports CBC News.
According to Mark Skage, while driving on a highway in the province of British Columbia, in southwestern Canada, he noticed that the small moose was alone at the foot of the asphalt. Seeing that the animal had been on the verge of being run over several times, he decided to stop, get out of the vehicle and try to drive it away.
However, he soon realized that a black bear was stalking the cub, and since the mother was not around to protect her, Skage decided to load her into his truck and take her to authorities with the BC Conservation Agents Service.
A decision that cost him his job
Although the man says he knows that it is best for nature to take its course, he said he could not leave the deer by the roadside to be eaten by the bear, and he said he was convinced he did the right thing.
Skage shared his experience on social media, which was brought to the attention of his employer, AFD Petroleum. Upon finding out about him, the company decided to remove him from his position, since he violated the protocols for the protection of wildlife by boarding an animal in a company vehicle.
“Rather than report the situation to a conservation officer and allow authorities to handle the rescue and relocation of the moose, the individual made the decision to transport the uninjured calf moose in the front seat of a law enforcement vehicle. company for many hours,” company president Dale Reimer said in a statement.
Skage confirmed that he was aware of the current legislation on the protection of wildlife and said that he was willing to assume the consequences of his actions. “It is illegal to pick up wild animals from the road or from the wild, anywhere. It is illegal to be in possession of wild animals and to transport them,” he acknowledged.
Although the man lost his job and could face legal consequences, he said he was not sorry and was satisfied with the decision he made. “She and I bonded on the return trip. We spent five and a half hours together in the van. […] God saved not just one moose calf, but several. It will grow and have many young, and its young will have more young. I think it’s something positive, I believe it with my heart,” he commented.
Source: RT
