An elusive elk that has been wandering the hills in Colorado with a car tire around its neck for at least two years has finally been freed of the obstruction, wildlife officials said.
The four-and-a-half-year-old, 600lb bull elk was spotted near Pine Junction, south-west of Denver, on Saturday evening and tranquilized, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
Officers with the agency had to cut off the elk’s five-point antlers to remove the encumbrance because they could not slice through the steel in the bead of the tire.
‘We would have preferred to cut the tire and leave the antlers for his rutting activity, but the situation was dynamic and we had to just get the tire off in any way possible,’ officer Scott Murdoch said.
