Young moose fatally impaled by spiky fence despite calls for change, other wildlife deaths

A young moose has been killed after being impaled by a fence in a neighborhood outside of Calgary, and residents say this isn't the first time the spikes have been fatal.

The incident happened Tuesday night in the community of Watermark in Bearspaw, which is located along 80th Avenue N.W., west of 12 Mile Coulee Road.

Sameer Sheth says the disturbing scene unfolded in his backyard, traumatizing his young daughter.

He says he awoke to two moose on his property, and quickly realized a third was caught on the fence with its head face down in the dirt.

"The body was hanging and it was constantly crying in pain…. We immediately called 911."

Wildlife officers came to assist the yearling bull moose but it had a giant opening on its side, since the fence was sticking through its body

"Then the moose fell over into our yard and we were then waiting to see, does it move or is it alright?" he said.

"So the RCMP officer gave us a phone number and said that generally moose can recover but, if not, then call us and we will come in and euthanize it."

But what struck Sheth is how much pain the moose was left in.

"When we went to see the moose behind in our backyard [in the morning] the moose tried to walk and a lot of red things were falling underneath it. The moose's inner parts were hanging out. It had a big cut."

Fish and Wildlife came back shortly after and put the animal down — saying in an email to CBC News that its injuries were too severe.

"These incidents are relatively rare, but residents should be aware that things on their property can impact wildlife. Residents can consider replacing or removing fences with metal spikes to avoid these types of situations," said the Alberta government in an email.

'Killer fence' fatal in the past

Resident Anne Coulson says this is the fifth time, she knows of, where wildlife have been fatally injured by what she calls the "killer fence."

She says a wildlife corridor goes through the area that connects Bearspaw Ridge to the Bow River valley, making it a popular site for wildlife.

However, it can also cause animals to jump the dangerous fence that separates private land from public walk paths and roadways.

"There have been multiple instances of deer leaping or trying to jump this fence while transiting the site," she said. "They all either bled out after hours of agony suffering or had to be put down by Fish and Wildlife."

Because of this, residents have called on the property's developer, Macdonald Development Corporation, to update the fence to make it safer.

But according to Coulson, she's been told the developer won't "pay a cent" toward it.

"Once they found that it was killing wildlife, they had repeated opportunities to stop using it or to mitigate it, and have refused," she said.

• City fixes Cameron Heights fence after deaths of several deer and years of complaints

"And I think residents feel quite reasonably that the burden of paying for this fence should not be put on them when they weren't the ones who chose it or installed it. But that's the situation we're in." 

The recent killing of the moose has now prompted residents to start a petition asking the fence be modified or replaced with spike-tipped fencing.

"Our whole community loves the wildlife here. Many of us are professionals who moved out of the city limits in order to be closer to wildlife and to have more of a communion with nature," she said.

"The outcome I suspect that everyone wants is for Macdonald Development Corporation, which is hardly poor, to recognize that it has a moral obligation to retrofit the bad fencing."

In an email to CBC News, the company says it's truly heartbroken by the death of another animal; however, can't make changes to the fencing without consulting the community as a whole. 

"Macdonald Communities looks forward to assisting and supporting the community as they work towards a decision as the owners of the fence," according to their statement.

Residents were also sent an email that was obtained by CBC, stating that the company will be discussing the issue at their next board meeting later this month.