One Nation, Under God

Transparency is all the rage

Apparently you can be too transparent.

Montana’s Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks is catching a lot of heat for euthanizing a moose calf, and then blowing up its carcass, along with those of its deceased twin and mother.

While the idea of disposing of the carcasses with explosives didn’t sit right with a lot of folks, killing the baby really set them off, especially after watching a video of the orphaned calf crying.

Because of concerns about disease, FWP doesn’t take in orphaned moose, deer or elk. They euthanize them.

This is no secret -- it’s FWP policy -- but nobody really gave a hoot until a video was posted on facebook of the cute, gangly baby moose shortly before FWP put it down.

Then the wailing and hand-wringing began.

“This is so sad,” someone wrote.

“This is outrageous,” added another.

The clueless also chimed in: “It could have come and lived at my place,” wrote one.

And when it grew up, maybe it would have befriended a flying squirrel.

FWP bases its decisions on science, not emotion. Although wild babies tug at our heartstrings, sound wildlife management can be very cold and heartless. The department may have been wise to keep mum about the whole affair, but that’s not how FWP works.

They told the whole story. In graphic detail.

They explained why the calf was killed and why the carcasses were blown up.

Transparency, you know, is all the rage.

But a lot of folks still didn’t understand.

They recoiled at the thought of a pink mist of moose.

“They should have gone in with shovels and buried them instead of blowing them up,” one wrote.

Grizzly bears probably would have devoured the whole work crew before they could have dug a hole that size, however, the demise of a handful of FWP employees probably wouldn’t have garnered as much sympathy as the death of that baby moose.

Explosives were used to dispose of the carcasses because the moose were in an area not accessible by a vehicle. Horses that die in the backcounty are disposed of in a similar fashion.

Kaboom!

Instead of a big stinky bear attractant, the result is a lot of little bitty pieces that are quickly cleaned up by the birds and other small critters.

Yes, it was sad.

Especially the video.

But when FWP makes sausage, they want you to know what’s in it.

Parker Heinlein is at [email protected]

 

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