Deputy frees moose stuck in chains of backyard swing set in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY – A moose was freed from a strange backyard entanglement thanks to a brave Utah deputy and a pair of cutters.

Sgt. Lane Findlay found himself face to face with the moose whose antlers were wrapped up in a backyard swing set this weekend.

The Weber County Sheriff’s deputy got the call Sunday and responded to a residential community outside Ogden, about 40 miles (64 kilometres) north of Salt Lake City. He said the moose appeared in distress, and was bleeding.

Findlay said he handed his mobile phone to an onlooker and asked the person to shoot video, telling him, “If something happens to me, give this to my wife.”

The video shows the moose twisting in an attempt to free its antlers from the metal chains of the swing as Findlay cautiously approaches with the cutters. He clips the chain links one by one until the moose finally pulls free and wanders off with minor injuries.

Findlay said he initially called wildlife officials but was told it might take an hour for them to respond.

“I just made the decision to go in there and see what I could do,” he said Wednesday. “Fortunately, the moose was tired and it didn’t seem threatened.”

Once free, the moose trotted to a nearby bucket of water and began drinking, “then he collapsed right there on the ground,” Findlay said.

He said he spent about an hour spraying down the animal with a hose while waiting for wildlife officials to arrive and assess the moose’s health.

“Pretty crazy stuff,” he said. “This is certainly a first for me, and hopefully a last.”