This baby moose was saved by 2 kayakers after it got stuck - Action News
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This baby moose was saved by 2 kayakers after it got stuck

A kayak trip turned into a rescue mission when two Calgarians saved a baby moose from rough waters last week.

Rescue happened on the Sheep River near Turner Valley, Alta.

Baby moose gets rescued from rough waters

3 years ago
Duration 0:54
Two Calgary men jumped into action when they noticed a baby moose was stuck on the Sheep River near Turner Valley, Alta. Credit: theleagueofbeautifulminds/Instagram

A kayak trip turned into a rescue mission when two Calgarians saved a baby moose from rough waters last week.

Calgary firefighterScott Linton told The Homestretchon Monday that he was kayaking on the Sheep River near Turner Valley when it all went down.

Linton and his friendBenny Clark were outfor a morning paddle when they spotted the small moose on a rocky shelf above the river.

"There was no other way for it to get there unless it had swam downstream already so, yeah, you could tell it was wet and you could even see it shivering from where we were," he said.

That's when the two men bolted toward the opposite side, jumped out of their kayaks and started forming a plan to help the small animal.

He says they realized the moose had to get back into the river in order to get to safety on the other side. Their onlyconcern was that if it jumped back into the water, they wouldn't be ready to save it.

"I was looking downstream just like, 'OK, where exactly are we on the river'and downstream about one hundred metres is kind of where the rapids begin again," he said.

But whiledeliberating the next steps, the moosefell off the shelfand into the river.

"That's when I grabbed the rope and ran out," said Linton.

"Ideally, we would have tied my end to me but it was too quick for that so I just held on basically for some support and ran out."

Luckily, the Calgary firefighter was fast enough and able to get waist deep into the water to bring the moose to safety on the other side.

"I didn't really feel like I was in any danger," he said.

"She didn't weigh much and she didn't put up much of a fight. I think she was exhausted and cold from her previous swim, whenever that was."

After the moose got to the shore, Linton says he examined it for any injuriesbefore it trotted off.

"I feel fortunate that I was there and I was able to help," he said.

"I'm sure thatthe firefighting definitely played in it. You just see something that needs to be fixed and you try to fix it. That's kind of the role."


With files from The Homestretch.