Drawn for Calf Moose...

J

Justin Black

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Grande Prairie, Alberta
Well I was fortunate enough to draw a Calf Moose tag this year, and plan on making this my main focus for the season. But I am a little leery about the Cows reaction. My recurve ain't much for self defense. Any of you folks have any stories to share about just such a situation?
 
Yep no worries. And it will be the most succulent tender game you have ever eaten. Just don't overcook it. It should be med-rare.
 
The 'rule of thumb' I was given years ago when I started Moose hunting was as follows. Shooting a calf in the company of a cow, if it's a young cow it's very likely that she'll run off. With an older cow, there's a good chance she'll hang around close by and make some attempts to defend.
 
Not to offend the last few posters but i know of 1 guy that is in a wheelchair for the rest of his life because he shot a calf and the cow came back and stomped his butt to the ground. He approached the calf 10 minutes after shooting it or so. This was with a rifle as well. He was taken by surprise and now he's crippled. Sh*t happens i guess.

The people teaching me how to hunt moose while i was growing up always said " There's a chance the cow will stick around after you shoot the calf so always keep your eyes and ears open. You may have to do 1 of 2 things really quickly. Run or shoo...." Well i guess you get the gist of it. I'd just follow those simple rules and you'll come out of it ok. Good luck on your hunt.

Dorian
 
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If the cow comes after you, fire a warning shot! If that doesn't suffice, put her down. Not rocket science folks, lots calves are shot every fall without incident. Read her body language and react accordingly. If you are that concerned take a firearm as backup to your recurve.

Patrick
 
cows can get grumpy from time to time...I've dressed out calves with the cow watching from <100m away on two occasions...they eventually wandered off but keep an eye on them for sure...
 
The last moose I shot was a calf in Dec. of 08. She was with an older very large cow. Every time we went towards her she would slowly start towards us. I fired a warning shot but she did not move a muscle. We decided to boil up and wait it out. After 20-30min. the cow slowly moved to the edge of the cut-over and stayed there. She was still there when we left. My advice would be to wait.
 
I've shot 2 calves and have had different reactions from the cow each time.

One cow would not leave and I had to go get help to run her off and even then I ended up dragging the calf into a clearing to do the gutting. I gutted while my brother stood guard, the cow was just inside the tree line. We used shotguns and half a box of shells that evening.

The other cow had 2 calves and that was easier, she didn't leave right away but I was able to chase her and her other calf away and gut the calf I shot.

watch you back when it comes to a pissed off cow moose.
 
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