April 10, 2007: Hooked elk

xoB sends this set along, including a story that he notes doesn't jibe with what the pictures show -- and so I'll only put up the images, no use passing along misinformation.



Obviously, though, these two are lucky; they've been found by humans. If they weren't found, they'd just waste away and die.



So it's a good animal pic not on a Friday, but what the hey; enjoy.

The humans that found them are probably planning on how to make a coat rack and a chandelier out of them.

Sitting ducks? How about standing deer.

Sheldonrs;332653 wrote:

The humans that found them are probably planning on how to make a coat rack and a chandelier out of them.

and steaks!

I want elk, had Pheasant yesterday.

Good thing with living with conservatives....you get fed well.

so....they just stood around and looked at the pretty elk? where are the heroic actions? the sawing and mauling? the elk must have been that way for some time....they seem down right calm about it. i want to see the pics of them after they disentangled them. or did they just kill them and eat them?

Time to get out that Swiss Army knife with the saw blade on it.

lumberjim;332682 wrote:

so....they just stood around and looked at the pretty elk? where are the heroic actions? the sawing and mauling? the elk must have been that way for some time....they seem down right calm about it. i want to see the pics of them after they disentangled them. or did they just kill them and eat them?

Oftentimes, a man has been reduced to stupefied inaction by the sight of a lovely rack.

Let alone two of them.

Too true. Those antlers are valuable and could be very useful.

Boingboing recently had a post about a pair of elk horns in the Smithsonian's collection. The original owners got locked together and died.

http://www.boingboing.net/2007/04/09/fighting_elk_lock_ho.html

How would they unhook them without getting stabbed by or trampled by the elk?

The only safe time to nuzzle an elk.

I have done it with white-tail, far easier, which is NOT saying much... still VERY dangerous.
Actually, they are not stupid, and elk (we had some on the ranch as "pets") are very smart, once they figure out that you are helping they just go limp.
There is a moment, at the end, where they get-up and go, well you just gotta' hope you are out of the way or lucky.
You religious types should pray first, there is no time during.
Finding one trapped in a fence or hooked in a tree is far worse, they do not settle nearly as quickly or easily. Don't know why.
It is a misconception that hunters have no compassion for the animals they hunt.

rkzenrage;332837 wrote:

It is a misconception that hunters have no compassion for the animals they hunt.

Very true. I don't know a hunter that will torture an animal.

rkzenrage;332837 wrote:

...Finding one trapped in a fence or hooked in a tree is far worse, they do not settle nearly as quickly or easily. Don't know why....

I would imagine it is because they cannot move. At least elk that are hooked together can still drink water and nibble grass if they figure out how to cooperate. It looks as though these two have worked that out. An elk hooked to a tree or fence is less likely to get freed before it would starve to death. Sad thought.

Sometimes, they break their neck also.
They don't cooperate, they just keep struggling until they pass-out or die.

I guess whoever designed those elk was not too intelligent.

The elk's expression in the first image makes me think it's thinking "Ah shit, now what do I do!"

And I bet that water is damn cold! :eek: