School’s moose visit prompts precautions

By Jeremy Appel on January 29, 2019.

jappel@medicinehatnews.com @MHNJeremyAppel

George Davison School took precautions after a moose was found in the field adjacent to its playground area.

The school posted a photo of the animal on its Facebook page Monday, which was shared by the Medicine Hat Public School Division account.

Principal Richelle Thomas says a student brought the administrators’ attention to the creature, after they saw it Sunday night.

“We thought we should probably take a walk through to see if it was still there this morning and it was actually hunkered down in the bushes there,” she said.

As a result of the moose sighting, the school locked all doors, except for the front entrance, while the Medicine Hat Police Service and administrators checked the field to ensure it was safe for students to go outside for recess.

After about two hours — around 10:15 a.m. — there was no sight of the moose and the school day returned to normal.

“We’re working with our school community to help families understand that they’re still wild animals and that, obviously, when they’re in distress, they can act in a manner that could be unpredictable,” said Thomas.

“We do have a significant number (of students) who walk along the back and cut across through the alley across our field, and we just want to make sure families help their kids know if they’re on their way to school and they see the animals to not approach them, to keep their distance.”

School administrators will continue monitoring the field each day to see if the moose returns, she added.

“The less people coming to see the animal probably helps in keeping the animal from a less agitated state,” Thomas said.

There has been a significant increase in moose sightings in the Hat in the past couple years, as Police Point Park interpreter Marty Drut told the News on Jan. 10.

While sightings used to happen once every year or two, they now appear to be “constant”, he said.

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