There are plenty of reasons to avoid feeding wildlife. For one, it conditions animals to rely on human food sources (check out the black bears at many dumps in Northern Ontario for proof). For another, it brings potentially dangerous animals into contact with humans, and when someone gets hurt, it’s usually the animal who suffers.
In the case of this enormous bull elk on Vancouver Island, the antlers alone should be reason enough to stay the heck inside. But when he stepped up onto a local porch in search of food earlier this week, the residents decided to test his friendliness and offer him a snack.
“We actually fed it by hand. It really enjoyed the carrots.” wrote the anonymous poster who shared the images on the site Reddit.com. “It was really docile.” he added. “I scratched him behind his ear while he chewed.”
It should go without saying, but if a bull elk steps up onto your porch looking for a snack, admire him from behind your window—for both your safety and his.
