DSCI0134 by William Reinke, on FlickrTwo days later he was back and decided to hang out all day.
DSCI0131 by William Reinke, on FlickrHe took a stroll to the edge of our side yard at one point and was eating on some twigs when one of the neighborhood dogs was coming down the road. The black lab saw the moose and started barking furiously, coming toward the moose. The moose would have none of it. He turned and faced the dog then started heading directly for it. The dog turned tail and ran and I haven't seen it since
This is a poor quality photo as it was taken through the screen, but you can see the moose's posture as it moved toward the dog.
DSCI0140 by William Reinke, on FlickrThe magpies like to get on the moose's back end and peck at their butt. At first I thought this would be a symbiotic relationship like the bison have with the blackbirds. But I could tell this guy did not like it, but he couldn't reach back far enough with his snout to knock it off. At one point the magpie flew to the ground beside the moose and the moose took both front legs and tried to stomp on it. But the magpie managed to escape.
This past week Karen started to head out to shovel some snow (I had recent hip replacement, so I'm not just being lazy
). I mentioned that there was a moose in the back yard. We watched for a few minutes and could see it was a yearling bull. 
DSCI0181 by William Reinke, on FlickrShe then decided to head out out and at least shovel the front deck when she saw a yearling female up beside the deck.
DSCI0177 by William Reinke, on FlickrI then looked out the side window and there was big Mama right beside our SUV.
DSCI0198 by William Reinke, on FlickrWe were surrounded by this moose family! Needless to say Karen decided to wait until they moved on.
Since that day they have decided they like it here. For over a week now, they usually make an appearance hanging around for some or most of the day. They have gotten used to us peering at them through the glass and barely react now.
DSCI0191 by William Reinke, on FlickrThe mother is very large and we are guessing she is quite old. Our yard here is not big and when she is out back she almost fills up the entire picture window.
DSCI0190 by William Reinke, on FlickrThey have impacted our lives somewhat as we don't want to make them move when they are resting and we also don't want to upset Mama with her yearlings close by. As I am writing this, the three are laying down by the steps to the deck. This is our only way out with all the snow, so we aren't going anywhere for a while. Karen recently reminded me of a statement I made just after we bought this place, "I wonder if we could plant some special bushes that would attract moose to our yard."
