A Canadian man lost his job because he couldn’t bear the thought of letting a moose calf get eaten by a ferocious black bear.
Mark Skage, a former employee at AFD Petroleum Inc., was fired after saving a moose calf from a black bear attack in British Columbia, Canada.
Skage spotted the abandoned moose calf on the side of a busy highway while driving back from work on June 6.
He pulled over to scare the young animal back into the woods, after seeing it almost get hit by multiple cars passing by.
As he approached the calf, he noticed a black bear nearby, waiting for an opportunity to strike.
Fueled by his love for the outdoors, Skage decided to help the baby animal that desperately attempted to climb into the safety of his truck, despite knowing it was against the law.
“I made a decision at the time after she kept [trying] to climb into the work truck that I couldn’t just leave her there,” he posted on Facebook.
Placing the calf in his passenger side of his vehicle, Skage drove to town to seek assistance.
“Her and I kind of bonded on the ride home,” he told CBC News. “I mean, shucks, we had, like, 5½ hours in the pickup truck together.”
Although his act of compassion was well-intentioned, it was illegal to pick up wild animals and transport them.
Skage, however, believed that the black bear posed a serious threat to the moose calf, and did what he thought was the right thing.
“I just couldn’t do it, in my heart. People can say all they want. I know as outdoorsmen, we talk about predator control,” he told the outlet.
“Black bears are the No. 1 predator for those calves. So I just thought, ‘Well, I can’t take care of the predator, but I guess maybe I can try and help out this little calf.'”
He named the moose Misty and contacted his supervisor and the local Conservation Officer for guidance.
Ultimately, Misty was taken to a rehab center to grow and prepare for her eventual release.
Unfortunately, Skage’s company, AFD Petroleum, did not support his actions.
They claimed that he should have called the conservation officer and let trained professionals handle the situation.
As a result, the company chose to terminate Skage’s employment, citing a violation of their wildlife policies.
AFD Petroleum President, Dale Reimer, condemned Skage’s actions, emphasizing that by transporting the moose calf without authorization, he put himself, other drivers, and the animal at risk.
“Instead of reporting the situation to a conservation officer and allowing the authorities to handle the rescue and relocation of the moose, the individual made the independent decision to transport an uninjured moose calf, a wild animal, in the front seat of his company vehicle for many hours,” Reimer remarked.
“This not only put the employee and other road users at risk but also potentially caused distress and harm to the moose.”
