When He Rescued A Moose, This Man Did Not Expect To Make A Surprising Discovery A Year Later!

 Moose are not the best pets to keep because they are big in size and also quite aggressive sometimes. But when you least expect it, the most ferocious animals tend to crave some love and affection. Erikas Plucas did not expect much when he saved an abandoned baby moose. He did not expect to experience such a change in his life when he saved the moose. Little did Plucas know that his life was going to be changed forever.

The Simple Life

Erikas Plucas was not someone that lived an extravagant life, nor was he someone that lived over the top. He was someone who was just living a simple life on a farm. Plucas lives in the Lithuanian countryside and enjoys the simple things in life like us city-folk.  His farm was situated near a forest so as you may have guessed, there were a lot of nature and wild animals present in his life.

A Peaceful Life

Plucas was not looking for the superficial things in life. He was not about the materialistic things that this world has to offer. He always felt that nature gave him peace and had always felt pastoral about spending his life far away from the chaotic lifestyle that the city offers. He was just going about his simple life when one day, an expected thing happened to him.

Just an Ordinary Day

It was like any other day with nothing much to mention when Plucas reached home. But all this changed when he met with a surprise at the front gate of his house. Plucas saw that there was a baby moose that was lying there so helplessly with no one to turn to. He rubbed his eyes to see if he was hallucinating or not but got closer to realize that he was not dreaming at all, that the baby moose was in fact right there.

Something Wrong

So in his head, there were many assumptions running around. He was sure that this moose must have probably reached his farm and was actually from the forest nearby. However, there was something that did not seem right to Plucas. He sensed that there was something wrong. When he went closer to inspect that moose, he found out the reason.

Time to Investigate

Just imagine how shocked you would be if you saw a baby moose lying there right in front of your house. Is was indeed shocking for Plucas to discover this. After he realized that the baby moose was really there, he looked around and checked to see if the calf was alone or not. To Plucas, the calf’s mother was somewhere around but even after a while, there was no moose to be found.

2 Weeks Old

So as soon as Plucas saw that the calf was all alone, he decided to take a closer look. Plucas went closer to the moose and was very cautious as he did not want to scare the little being. When he was near the baby moose, he could see that it was a female moose that may have been just over two weeks or so. Since her condition was not great, he could guess how the mother turned out.

Hunters

There was only one assumption that Plucas had at the back of his head. He believed that this female moose’s mother was definitely killed by hunters. Since the attack left the baby moose in such a shock, he was sure that that calf was in search of safety. So it soon ended up on the property of the farm to get away from the merciless hunters. The calf was injured as well.

An Injured Calf

“The first sight of her was heartbreaking,” Plucas explained to the interviewers when he was first asked about the initial moment when he met the calf. Since it had gone through such a traumatic experience, the calf was very frightened and in a very bad shape. So Plucas knew in his heart that in order to save the calf from other predators, he had to step in and help her.

The Rescue

“She was starved, dirty, sad, and her fur was infested with flies,” Plucas further explained as he spoke about how badly the baby moose was when he discovered her in his front gate. He said that the baby calf was hurt physically and it was also mentally shaken because of the hunters. Plucas said that she was trembling with fear when he approached her too.

Rescuing Her

The calf was in such a bad state that she could not even stand up and walk on her own. This made Plucas all the more eager to act right away and try to better her condition. SO what did he do? Plucas picked the calf with his arms and placed her inside the house. He was confused as to what he could do next. Plucas was not at all prepared for what was coming next.

The Call

The only thing for Plucas to do next was to call experts for help as he was not trained to medicate the calf. So he immediately called Animal Services after he carried the baby moose inside the house. However, an unfortunate thing happened because they could not offer any help until the next day. The calf was in his hands to be cared for during the first night.

Advice From Friends

So since he was not confident about handling the baby moose, there was something Plucas had to do. His next move was to call his friends up and tell them about the whole story to hopefully get some advice from them. He was unexpectedly scolded by his closest friends that told him he was not capable of taking care of the calf and that he was a fool for taking her in.

The Unexpected Backlash

As we all would have probably done, Plucas decided to call up some of his family members and a few of his best friends seeking some advice and tips. He was unexpectedly received with much aggression from the people he called up. “‘It is illegal, you should not do it. Let nature take care of it,” were some of the things that Plucas was left to hear.

No Help From Others

He soon realized that there was no one he could turn to for help. So Plucas decided to collect some leaves and poured some milk to check if the moose would be willing to eat. He knew in his heart that this was going to be a very long night but was not about to give up. He knew that he had to try his best to hopefully save the calf as her condition was worsening by the minute.

A Helpless Situation

Animal Services ended up being of no help at all and it was quite a blow for poor Plucas who needed their help.Not a single facility that helps or assists wild orphan animals can be found in Lithuania. So Plucas obviously had to call the only option there: Animal Services. He knew that if he left her, the hunter would come and surely take her life.

Animal Shelter

One thing that Plucas knew for sure was that if he gave the calf to the local hunters, there was only one result. It would mean certain death for the poor calf. He again called to ask for help, ringing Animal Services once again. He had one question for them. Even though his friends had told him that keeping a baby calf was illegal, he wanted to know from Animal Services if this was true.

Unexpected News

There was a huge surprise that was waiting for Plucas. He did not expect it but Animal Services agreed that he could take the moose in and keep her on his farm. They told him that it was up to him and that it was solely based on his choice. However, they did tell him that if he decided to keep her, it would automatically mean he was responsible for her.

Emma

It was such an exciting news for Plucas to hear. He decided to keep the female moose and even gave her the name Emma. As you may have already guessed, the first few weeks that he kept her was very challenging for Plucas. You could even compare the feeling to something like fatherhood. Emma needed constant attention and required to be fed after every hour.

Baby Steps

Plucas did all that he could to nurse Emma back to health. He really was the perfect owner/dad for Emma. And so, it came as no surprise to see that Emma was growing very attached to him. Each time he had to leave Emma, she would cry and beg him not to leave. He would even sleep next to her in the barn or even in the open fields just to make her feel safe.

A Strong Bond

As they were together most of the time, the bond between Emma and Plucas was getting very strong. Emma soon started to trust him and it was clear that she was starting to feel safe. “She was afraid of everything but me,” Plucas had even said. Emma was getting better and was now in a place where she felt safe. Plucas had to think of what the next step would be…

Into the Forest

Emma started to show progress and in due time, Plucas felt that she needed to get introduced to the forest because that was where she ultimately belonged. Emma was initially very scared of the forest and was apprehensive about entering but Plucas assisted her and even helped her find food. He wanted her to get closer to nature and get connected with it. 

All Grown Up

Emma grew bigger and became more comfortable in the forest. She would often roam about for hours unattended in the forest nearby. This would then leave Plucas to get a little tensed worried if she would forget her home. “I remember those first nights she didn’t come home,” Plucas explained, “Oh, I barely slept. But she grew up, I had to get over it. After all, it was my goal from the very beginning.” 

An Unbreakable Bond

Emma had fully grown up and stayed permanently in the forest, but this did not mean that Plucas was forgotten. She still came to see him every day. She would come to play and spend some time with Plucas every day. Plucas would always keep some treats with him to give to Emma. However, there was a huge surprise that Emma was about to give Plucas.

One More Hurdle

Emma was not fond of other humans except Plucas, due to obvious reasons. “To me, she is gentle and loving. She is very careful when we are playing, so she would not hurt me,” explains Plucas. Even though she had grown up to be a mature moose, there was still a huge problem that was in her way: the local hunters! Plucas has to plan something to keep her safe.

The Plan

Even though Seeing Emma roam about in the forest was thrilling, Plucas feared that Emma would turn out like her mother. He did not want to lose her but could not keep her with him. Plucas decided to put the hunter on his side and so he invited them. “I had some hunters over for them to see her as not just a nice, warm steak with potatoes and vegetables on the table, but as a very intelligent and loving animal,” Plucas said.

A Successful Outcome

Plucas succeeded in his plan after the hunter saw his connection with Emma. The hunters ended up promising to not hunt Emma and some even claimed they would stop hunting moose altogether. Plucas felt like he achieved something after hearing that some hunter would completely stop their hunting. He was over the moon to hear this and just then Emma came as a huge surprise.

A Surprise!

Emma had spent some time in the forest by herself. One day, she came to visit Plucas and he discovered that she was actually pregnant. It was such a good news to see that she was fitting well with the other moose in the wild. In Plucas’ words, “I’m her world now and she is mine. Sometimes I wonder: was it me who saved her, or is it the other way around?” T