Timmins, Ont., prospectors rescue moose trapped in mud hole

Sudbury -

A moose is on the loose again in Timmins, Ont., after the animal was rescued from a deep mud hole last week by two local prospectors.

The incident took place Aug. 26 when a friend alerted Maurice Valliere and Pat Greba that a moose was trapped in the mud.

A moose is on the loose again in Timmins, after the animal was rescued from a deep mud hole last week by two local prospectors. (Photos from Facebook)

Valliere told CTV News they initially tried to contact the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, but couldn't get a response. The moose was stuck in a hole located about two kilometres in the bush off of Highway 655.

When his friend called, Valliere and Greba realized the animal was trapped just a few kilometres from where they were. When they couldn't get an answer from the ministry, they acted themselves.

"We decided we might as well go before he drowns," Valliere said. "We didn't think he was that big or that deep in (the water)."

It turns out the moose was more than six feet tall – maybe seven, he estimated – and was stuck in deep water.

'Everything was in the mud hole'

"It was just his head was sticking up, that's it," he said. "The whole body -- everything was in in the mud hole."

Valliere used his Argo four-wheeler and some canvas slings he had and they managed to get the sling around the moose.

"We pulled and pulled and then we had to put the Argo in reverse because the winch couldn't handle it," he said.

A moose is on the loose again in Timmins, after the animal was rescued from a deep mud hole last week by two local prospectors. (Photos from Facebook)

A few attempts and about an hour later, they managed to get the moose free. Valliere said the animal was exhausted and allowed his dog to lay near him.

A moose is on the loose again in Timmins, after the animal was rescued from a deep mud hole last week by two local prospectors. (Photos from Facebook)

"He was burnt right out (and) he was he was shaking," he said. "I had my dog with me and he just laid there and didn't bark at him or nothing. And it seemed to calm him down. He shook for about a minute there. And then he tried his legs and everything worked. So he decided to go just off."

A moose is on the loose again in Timmins, after the animal was rescued from a deep mud hole last week by two local prospectors. (Photos from Facebook)

Valliere said this wasn't the first moose to get stuck in that mud hole. While trying to free the animal, they discovered bones from those who weren't so lucky.

"We found hip bones and stuff like that from other (moose)," he said.

Since photos and details of the incident hit social media, Valliere said he's been surprised at how much interest the story has received.

"It never even dawned on me that it would go on Facebook," he said. "A buddy of ours is good on computers and he wanted to put that on Facebook. I said go ahead, if you want, maybe it'll make somebody smile."

The post has garnered 1,300 shares, almost 900 likes and hundreds of comments.

"Yeah, it's just unreal -- it's just blowing right up now," he said. "It feels good."