Erikas Plucas is a farmer from Lithuania. He’s used to wild animals and nature, considering his farm is right next to a forest. When Erikas found himself being relied on by a baby moose, he began to gain a whole new outlook on life, and of course, a brand new best friend for the rest of his life.
One day, Erikas returned home to a surprise! There, laying in front of his gate, was a baby moose. Erikas looked all around but realized the baby moose was all alone. As he approached the moose, Erikas realized the moose was no older than two weeks. In that moment, Erikas understood what was going on.
Erikas believed that hunters killed the baby’s mother, and looking for safety, the moose wandered onto Erikas property. The baby moose didn’t look too good, though. The moose looked like she was starving, and she had flies buzzing all around her dirty fur. If Erikas didn’t do something to help her she would die. Unfortunately, the moose was scared of Erikas.
Even though she was terrified, the baby was too weak to stand, let alone run away. Erikas picked her up as carefully as possible and took her inside. He called Animal Services but they wouldn’t be able to come until the following day. While he was waiting, Erikas called some friends for advice. To his surprise, Erikas was treated with aggression.
“‘It is illegal, you should not do it, let nature take care of it’ was all I heard,” said Erikas of his friends’ advice. They couldn’t change his mind so Erikas grabbed some milk, and collected different leaves, to see if the baby would eat. Then Erikas continued to wait for Animal Services who, unfortunately, wouldn’t be of any help.
“Since here in Lithuania, we do not have a special institution who would take care of wild orphan animals, they called local hunters and asked if they can take her,” explained Erikas about meeting with Animal Services. He knew that the hunters would just kill the moose, so he asked Animal Services if it was alright if he just kept her. Surprisingly, they said yes!
Erikas began calling the moose Emma. Erikas remembers the first few weeks being a bit challenging. Every four hours the moose needed to eat and he couldn’t leave her alone for long periods of time. Every time Erikas went into the house, the moose would cry. So he began sleeping next to her, in the barn or out in the open, in order for her to feel safer. As the moose started to feel better, the more she trusted Erikas.
Emma was growing every day, but she wasn’t afraid of Erikas anymore. It was time for Emma to be reintroduced to her home, the forest. Emma didn’t really want to go at first, but she followed Erikas wherever he went. Erikas tried to show Emma what was safe and dangerous, and he helped her look for food. His wished that Emma could learn to do it all on her own. Emma started making progress.
The more Emma grew, the more comfortable she became in the forest. It wasn’t long before she began going into the forest alone. Erikas felt like he was a parent having to send their child into the world, but he knew Emma belonged into the wild. “I remember those first nights that she didn’t come home,” he said. “Oh, I barely slept.” But he knew she needed to go.
Now that Emma is all grown up, she permanently lives in the forest. But don’t you dare think that she stopped loving the man who saved her life! Every day, she heads to the farm to spend a few hours with Erikas. Sometimes they get to swim together, and he always has treats for Emma. Erikas and Emma’s bond is special, and you can see that in the way she treats him.
Except for her relationship with Erikas, Emma doesn’t really care for humans. “To me, she is gentle and loving. She is very careful when we are playing, so she would not hurt me,” said Erikas. He knew there were other dangers for her out there, though, considering she was full-grown moose now.
Erikas knew how easy it would be to lose Emma to hunters roaming through the woods. Erikas knew that Emma needed to be a free moose, but he couldn’t stand the thought of her being killed. He couldn’t keep her on the farm, so he came up with a completely different kind of plan.
Erikas tried to get the hunters on his side. “I had some hunters over for them to see her as not just a nice, warm steak with potatoes and vegetables on the table, but as a very intelligent and loving animal,” he explained. He wasn’t sure how well it was going to go, so he was really surprised when it worked.
The hunters, seeing the relationship Erikas and Emma had, agreed not to hunt her. Some of the hunters went a little further and said they wouldn’t shoot moose at all anymore, and others said they wouldn’t be hunting ever again! Considering that Emma would soon have her own family, Erikas was more than happy to hear the news!
Recently, Erikas was noticing that Emma’s stomach seemed to be getting rounder and bigger. She was obviously pregnant! That’s when Erikas understood that Emma has found home and she was doing very well, but their bond would always stay strong. He said, “I’m her world now and she is mine. Sometimes I wonder was it me who saved her, or is it the other way around?”