Wildlife shelter says Morris the moose ready to run free

Photo: Contributed

Morris the moose is about to vamoose.

The young ungulate, found orphaned last summer north of Burns Lake, has been nursed and cared for, and now wanders around outside the Northern Lights Wildlife Society shelter he has called home the past few months.

He roams off, comes back for a visit, roams off again – but he will any day now heed the call of the wild, walk away, and not return.

"He comes and goes, he's still hanging around," said Northern Lights's Angelika Langen. "As things green up, he'll be gone. I think in about two or three more weeks."

The shelter specializes in black bears, deer and moose, and the grounds are excellent for allowing the latter two to gradually be reintroduced into the wild, rather than the sudden and permanent release for most rehabbed wildlife.

Most of the animals brought in are orphaned or injured by traffic, trains, barbed wire, poaching or habitat loss.

"We just saw the first nose of a hibernating bear poke up through the snow," Langen said. "They started to get noisy a week ago, as soon as it greens up, we'll get (the other animals) out of here as quick as we can."

Thirty years ago, it tugged on the heartstrings every time an animal left the shelter, Langen said. "It was pretty tough. But no, not anymore.

"It's what we want, for them to be free. And with a new baby season just about here, we need the room."