According to a new report from the wildlife committee in Målselv, a moose has been trapped between the fences at Bardufoss Airport for 16 months.
It was New Troms who first mentioned the case.
When the wildlife committee finally killed the elk, it was found that the elk had sustained very extensive injuries.
The witness believes that the Armed Forces has deliberately accepted violations of the Animal Welfare Act.
Colonel Eirik Stueland, who is head of the Maritime Helicopter Force and chief responsible for the activity at the airport, denies that they have acted in a critical manner in the case.
– Serious
– We take this matter very seriously. I have used the word animal cruelty. To draw a comparison: Had it been a farmer who had done this to a cow, he would probably have received a punishment and lost the right to run a farm, says leader of the wildlife committee, Jørn Larsen, to Dagbladet.
It was in December 2019 that four animals got lost behind the fence at the airport.
The wildlife committee was contacted, and it was decided due to animal welfare considerations, that the animals should be killed the following day.
Three of the animals were killed, but the moose escaped. The report concludes that the moose must have been confined for 16 months.
Major damage
On March 19 this year, the wildlife committee was inside the airport to try to get the elk out. After approx. for two hours, the operation had to stop for animal welfare reasons. The moose must have been very stressed.
On April 17, Viltnemda tried again. But when they found the elk, it came running with two stray dogs behind it. They then observed that the moose had major injuries.
On April 20, the wildlife committee went with a hunting team and killed the elk.
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The elk was transported to the Norwegian Armed Forces’ driving school and it was found that the animal had serious injuries to the head, under the eyes, ears, shoulders, neck and back.
The damage is most likely to have been sustained by the moose as it has tried to push its way through the fence, the report states.
– Gets pissed
The moose was then transported out of the camp, and a field autopsy was performed. It was then established that the moose had to be discarded as it “was not suitable for human consumption”.
– The moose had been stressed and aggressive while she was trapped. The moose was completely destroyed inside. Both kidneys, liver and lungs did not look, says Larsen, and continues:
– We discovered that there were many more injuries to the elk than we had managed to register. You get a little pissed off, simply. Things like this make an impression, says Larsen.
According to Larsen, the case could have been resolved already in 2019.
– Had we been allowed to be there at that time, possibly at the beginning of 2020, I think we would have gotten the elk out already then, he believes.
– We think the case is sad. As the Armed Forces has handled it, and refused us to get it out at an earlier stage, he believes.
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– Unsure
– Have you accepted a violation of the Animal Welfare Act?
– No, far from it. The wildlife committee makes allegations that they have no evidence to make, says Colonel Eirik Stueland.
He says that they have observed animals in the area, but that it is uncertain whether it is the same animal that has been confined for 16 months.
– It happens every now and then that animals come in and out here, so it is difficult to say if it is the same elk. But we have observed moose in the camp, and followed up to see if the welfare of the animal has been taken care of. We never saw any visible damage to the elk, or to the fence, and we have repeatedly tried to drive out moose that have been in there, says Stueland.
– The damage has been observed after we had the wildlife committee inside to help drive the animal out. We believe that the allegations made by the wildlife committee are unjustified.
– A cruel sight
– You mean the Armed Forces has not done anything reprehensible in this case?
– No, I think we have not done anything reprehensible in the case, he emphasizes.
– According to Viltnemda, you did not want to let them in to get the elk out. Why not?
– It is a claim from the wildlife committee. We have a separate instruction for care for larger animals inside the camp. We have a separate department that has tried several times to drive out the moose. We have not seen the need to call the wildlife committee to do that job. We have tried ourselves, but after repeated attempts without motorized vehicles, so as not to stress the moose, we finally called the wildlife committee, says Stueland.
– We always try to get the animals that get lost here, he adds.
– Hell, moose!
– Worth criticizing
The leader of the wildlife committee, Jørn Larsen, thinks the incident is very reprehensible.
– We are now preparing a case that will be up in the wildlife committee, where a decision will be made on whether we should go to the police or not, says Larsen, and adds:
– The commander of the military helicopter wing downplays the case to the local newspapers, which proves that he has no empathy at all and uses his authority in a completely wrong way, says Larsen.
Colonel Eirik Stueland responds to the criticism of Dagbladet:
– It is a pity that the leader of the wildlife committee makes such allegations. It is important to us that we handle animals that get lost in the station in the best possible way. We handle such cases in accordance with our instructions, which are designed to safeguard animal welfare. If we discover that there is damage to an animal, we will of course call the wildlife committee immediately, Stueland answers.
Stueland adds that they are in a continuous process of repairing the outer fence, to prevent larger animals from arriving at the station.
The report states the following:
“For the future where game may get inside the fences, the game committee must enter as soon as possible. It is the wildlife committee that manages moose, among other things, not the Armed Forces. “
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