John Scarffe, Nederland. Pastor Doug Gibney, who has been a caretaker for Arapahoe Ranch, above Nederland, and pastor at Calvary Chapel Church in Nederland since 1980, heard willows snapping as a cow moose burst out of nearby willows and knocked him down on Thursday morning, June 6, 2019. He found himself 100 yards from his house at the end of an everyday run of the property. He had been heading back to the house.

Gibney was carrying out his regular duties as caretaker that day. The property contains a lot of lakes that need to be regulated and not flowing over trails, and he has to make sure the streams are not flowing over the trails.

“That’s what a caretaker does,” Gibney said. “I was just going on my normal run every day.” The property has trails all over, and beavers build dams that cause back flows. He has to pull them out by hand so Boulder can have water.

As he was heading back to the house, the moose came out of the willows. Gibney was spun around, and then the moose came back. He was knocked down three times, and everything happened so fast, Gibney said.

The last charge spun him around, and then the moose came back at him and reared up. Gibney rolled over to the opposite side and the moose crushed his ribs. Then his dog ran back to him and started barking, which caused the moose to get off of him. 

Gibney was then able to crawl into a nearby pond. “She just stood there for a minute and looked at me and then went back to her calf,” Gibney said.

He waited for a moment in the pond, and she turned back, so he walked back to the house, where his wife had seen what happened and called 911. Nederland paramedics arrived in five minutes. 

Gibney was transported by ambulance to Boulder Community Hospital for examination of his injuries. He had three broken ribs, punctured lungs and hematomas. His rib cage was broken on the left side. 

Gibney said he has been aware of the cow moose for the past five years and has had no problem, but he wants people to be cautious. She is not an aggressive moose, but she just calved early last week, and they are very protective of their calves, Gibney said. 

In the past, she walked through their yard with her calf, umbilical cord still hanging down. “We have to be aware, but there is a difference between protective and aggressive,” he said.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers surveyed the property and found a cow moose still in the area, and witnesses reported seeing her with a calf recently, likely prompting the defensive and aggressive behavior. A dog was also present at the scene of the attack, according to a Parks and Wildlife news release.

No action will be taken against the moose because this incident occurred outside of town on private property. The moose was in its natural habitat and likely a result of seasonal behavior being very protective of its young, according to the release. “Although this incident was not believed to be sparked by irresponsible behavior, it does serve as an example that wildlife are just that, wild, and they can act in unpredictable ways.” CPW reminds the public to respect wildlife and their space.

“It serves as a good reminder that not only moose, but elk and deer are also having babies right now, and does and cows can be aggressive when their fawns and calves are newborn and very vulnerable to predation,” said Area Wildlife Manager Kristin Cannon. “They may be aggressive toward people, but especially people with dogs, and especially if those dogs are off leash.”