Idaho Fish and Game officials relocated an adult bull moose last week after it charged at an 88-year-old Arbon Valley woman while she was in her yard.

The resident, Nelda Williams, wasn’t injured in the incident, said Toby Boudreau, regional wildlife specialist with Idaho Fish and Game; however, he felt it was necessary to relocate the animal after attempts to get it to leave the area voluntarily failed.

“From the standpoint of human safety, we thought it in the best interest of the moose and the public to go ahead and move it,” Boudreau said.

Williams said she first saw the moose on her property on Wednesday morning, and she wasn’t too concerned about the animal then. In fact, she took pictures of it. But she didn’t realize it was still on her property when she walked into her yard that afternoon; it didn’t take her long to spot the animal on the other side of some trees.

“I could see him walking slowly, but I was not worried yet,” she said adding that she never dreamed the animal would come towards her rather than retreat to a more protected area.

She was wrong.

“He swung around and came straight at me,” Williams said.

Her only defense was a ski pole she uses to walk over the uneven ground on her property, so she hollered and swung the pole as he charged. He turned away before he reached her, but she said she didn’t think he was bluffing.

“It felt like he was on top of me. He looked so huge,” she said, adding that she headed for her home as soon as she could get away. “I was scared to death.” 
Williams called fish and game officials at that point. Boudreau said they used rubber bullets to encourage the animal to leave the area, and then they followed it for a while with off-road vehicles. But the moose still came back the very next day.

“(Nelda’s) homestead is a beautiful oasis in the middle of agricultural fields. It’s moist and there is lots of vegetation. He probably found Nelda’s place comfortable and with a well-stocked grocery,” Boudreau said, adding that they were concerned that the animal would just keep coming back.

That’s why they decided to tranquilize it and then relocate the animal to another area entirely — standard procedure in a case like this.

“We’ve moved 11 moose (throughout the region) this spring,” Boudreau said, adding that relocation is usually best to protect both the animals and people. “We take them to someplace safe.”

Williams — relieved, but not completely settled after her unnerving experience — hopes the moose will stay away this time. She said she is grateful to fish and game officials for all they did to help her and knows she can call on them again if she needs to.

“I really appreciate fish and game,” she said.

Boudreau said Williams did the right thing by calling them, and he encourages other people who encounter moose in populated areas to call fish and game officials for help. The local number is 232-4703.

“If you run into moose, don’t approach them,” he said.