Well-mannered moose drops in, hangs out in basement of Idaho home

WILDLIFE – Authorities say a cow moose is safe and back in the wild after she fell through an unlatched window into the basement of a home in Hailey,Idaho.

The moose spent about three hours in the basement early Sunday morning, the Idaho Mountain Express reports.

• A similar incident occurred in north Spokane in 2009 (see photo).

Law enforcement officers and those from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game tried to shoo the moose upstairs beginning at about 2:30 a.m.

That could have developed into the proverbial bull in a China closet.

A Fish and Game officer arrived from Twin Falls at about 5:30 a.m. and shot the moose with a tranquilizer dart.

Homeowner Julie Emerick says eight officers carried the approximately 600-pound animal up the stairs. The moose got up and ran off about 15 minutes laterl, she says.

The basement room suffered little damage, Emerick said, calling the moose “the most polite, gracious beast.”