Alaska Man Sees Moose Foaming at Mouth at Dumpsters Chewing on a Plastic Trash Bag & Decides to Help Before it Chokes

A Good Samaritan in Alaska sees a moose acting strangely by dumpsters in Anchorage. He thinks that time is of the essence to act quickly, so he helps dislodge a trash bag from the mouth of the moose. It turns out that the trash bag was caught in its throat. After helping the moose, the man gives the moose a pumpkin and stays for about an hour to ensure everything is okay.

Moose with trash bag in mouthPhoto byJames West (Facebook)

Alaska's News Source reported that James West saw a moose near dumpsters on Thursday, 23 March 2023 that was behaving oddly. It was "chewing profusely, foaming at the mouth, and stumbling" around.

At this point, most people would have called animal control or the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, but James decided to take matters into his own hands, partly because the moose seemed to need urgent attention. Thinking fast, he jumped in to help.

Keep in mind that moose can be very aggressive, and very territorial. It is not recommended to approach moose, because they have been known to charge at people that get too close.

James West Posted About the Moose Incident on Facebook

James WestPhoto byJames West (Facebook)

James (see photo above) posted details about the incident on Facebook.

He wrote:

"So I was driving past some dumpsters today and noticed something odd. I seen a moose chewing on a what appeared to be a trash bag. He was stumbling, chewing profusely, and foaming at the mouth. As I got closer I noticed he was choking on the trash bag. I thought about calling animal control but I kind of felt time was of the essence too, so I slowly made my way closer and closer to see if I could just get a hold of it, as I grab the trash bag and started pulling I started to get worried because I knew at that point it was all the way down his throat. I was able to remove it without hurting him or myself. I then noticed a pumpkin, and gave it to him to eat and boy was he happy after that, I hung out with him for a little over an hour, watching him play with his pumpkin and eating it." -James West (Source: Facebook post)

His Facebook post is seen below.

Many people have commented that James has done a good deed for this moose. He potentially saved its life, and it could have gone a different way, but fortunately, the situation didn't "go south."

Do you think James should have risked his safety to help the moose having trouble chewing on a trash bag?

It's good that James and the moose both left the situation unharmed.

Please share this article on social media so others can be informed about this story.

Sources

Alaska Department of Fish and Game official website.

Fernandez, Georgina. "Man saves moose from choking on a plastic bag." KTUU Alaska's News Source. 23 March 2023.

James West's Facebook account. Facebook post about helping the moose.