Isn’t a moose dangerous? Should I be afraid to walk by myself? Buffalo are mean, aren’t they? What about at night? I’ve had coyotes follow me!

What is the truth?
Fortunately for us humans, all wild creatures are afraid of us and grant us a tremendous level of respect. I say fortunately, because in reality we are very puny creatures that meat-eaters like bears, mountain lions, wolves and even coyotes could probably kill quite easily – but they don’t. It is extremely rare for these creatures to look at a human as a menu item. If this were not the case, they could easily come into town every night and grab us.

Our deepest instincts, the ones that creep up our spines in the darkness, make us fearful of being eaten by large animals. (Hollywood loves to touch that instinct all the time.) However, such animal-human confrontations are 99.9% imaginary. In addition, if you have any savvy, such an event becomes virtually impossible.

How can you make sure you have this "savvy?" And what about plant-eaters such as elk or even porcupine? They have stomped, gored or harpooned people from time to time. Why would they do such a thing? How can I tell if I’m next? The answers are clear.

In regard to the plant-eaters – the deer, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, elk, moose and bison and, yes, even the porcupine (who, by the way, CANNOT shoot quills at you) – they never “attack” people.

Attack is the wrong word for what happens. There is no benefit to them to be near people at all. Actually, they incur a large risk in confronting humans. Why does it happen? They feel the need to defend themselves, their space, their food and/or their young from threats. After every documented incident, the animal immediately moved away from the human, proving it had no further interest in humans. The animal’s behavior was defensive, not offensive.

Bear!
Even bears simply “maul” people (beat them up a bit, in bear terms) and then run away. People who accidentally tangle with a bear usually live to tell the rest of us about it.

Why do the bears let us live? They can kill tougher animals with stronger defenses. Again, the evidence shows they are not attacking. They appear to be trying to teach us a lesson (often with serious consequences from our perspective) about honing in on the space which contains their only food or escape route. These are areas in which they constantly compete with others of their own kind.

We label any wildlife/ human incidents as attacks because they come as a surprise to us. We are not seeking to harm the animals, so why should they be so defensive? The truth is that we unknowingly intimidate them. How? We are just dominating looking and smelling creatures. It is your body and physical movements that make animals react the way they do.

So what can we do? The answer is to mind your manners, have some respect, and don’t miscommunicate. Watch each animal you encounter for the warning signals that mean it is getting stressed. Give it plenty of room, particularly if it shows you the warning or alarm signals listed in the table on this page.

For a human-to-human example, let’s say you cut someone off on the freeway. This is just like barging into a moose’s foraging or bedding area unannounced. The other driver feels threatened and offended. He is struggling to get to work, feed his family, etc. Just like you.

Know the signs
When that moose stares into your glaring eyes (Stage I), it is the equivalent to the offended driver honking his horn to warn you of his presence. Both driver and moose are telling you to give them some space. If you continue to crowd that driver, he lays on a second LONG blast and shakes his fist at you. This behavior is equivalent to the moose’s Stage II alarm reaction of flattening its ears. At this point, if you are a sentient creature, you will feel like you want to oblige the request for space.

When you continue to glare at that frustrated driver, swerve toward his car and shout, “Get off my road!” that is the same as following too close to a moose with your camera staring at him like a predator’s big eye. In stage III, the moose might try to run you off the road.

In both the human and animal world, the results of these encounters depend on the state of mind of the offended individual. Sometimes the driver, or moose, just moves off and deals with the stress as best he can. Other times, he feels he has no choice but to put his foot, or hoof, down to make a point.

Who is attacking whom? Think about it. Learn the animal warning signs and try to “read” what the animals are telling you. Keep in mind that you are a scary creature and that animals really don’t want to be around humans if they have a choice.

Moose Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Flatten their ears Stage 3: Bristle Hackles Consequence: Stomp/trample/kick the human. Stressed moose is often killed by government as a "dangerous" animal.

Elk Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Head nod Stage 3: Bluff charge Consequence: Stomp/trample/gore the human. The stressed Elk is often hazed away from area.

Bison(Buffalo) Stage 1: Listening to/looking at the human Stage 2: Possible tail lift Stage 3: Charging Consequence: Gore and toss human. Bison is stressed and often killed by government as "dangerous."

Pronghorn Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Flair rump hair Stage 3: Running Consequence: None to the human. The Pronghorn is stressed and forced to leave area.

Porcupine Stage 1: Turns backside Stage 2: Bristles quills Stage 3: Swats with tail Consequence: None if human is at least one foot away. Porky is stressed.

Bear Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Approaches Stage 3: Popping teeth Consequence: Chase/bite/maul human. Bear stressed and often killed as "dangerous."

Mountan Lion Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Crouches Stage 3: Creeps Consequence: Chase/bite/maul human. Lion stressed and often killed as "dangerous."

Coyote Stage 1: Eye contact Stage 2: Approaches Stage 3: Barking Consequence: Human is bitten. Coyete stressed and killed as "dangerous."