A Colorado woman is facing charges after she walked up and pet a moose wandering the streets of downtown Breckenridge. A video of the incident was recorded by Anna Stonehouse and shared on Instagram.
In the video, the unidentified woman approaches the moose from behind and pets it on the back. The moose turns around to face her, and she begins to pet it on the head. A person in the video can be heard saying, "That girl's an idiot."
The woman then starts to walk away, but the moose appeared agitated and kicked its front legs towards the woman.
"I thought it was pretty shocking, and everyone else around did too," Stonehouse told KDVR. "We all wanted to keep our distance and get away and let the moose do its thing. To see someone act that way, it seemed very childish and inappropriate and ignorant."
The woman walked away without further incident, but wildlife officials said it could have been much worse.
"Moose can weigh up to 1,000 pounds," Travis Duncan with Colorado Parks and Wildlife told the news station. "They're deceptively fast. This person is lucky they weren't injured because this could have been catastrophic."
Duncan said it is vital to keep your distance from wild animals.
"If you hold your hand out at arm's length, and you can cover that animal with your thumb, then you're at a good distance," Duncan said. "If you can't, then you need to back up and give that animal space."
The woman was cited for harassment of wildlife and faces a fine of up to $200.