Believing a ram is in need of a romantic partner is one of the more unique reasons the B.C. Conservation Officer Service says its expertise was sought in 2022.

In total, the service says its officers received more than 30,000 human-wildlife conflict calls last year, some of which stood out more than others. Here is the service’s top 10:

1. A caller contacted the service after a peacock wandered into their home through an open door. They weren’t concerned about the peacock’s presence – in fact, the caller’s grandpa thought it should probably stay inside given the weather – but just wanted to let the service know.
2. A woman tried to schedule an appointment with the service for them to come and remove a large number of snakes from her garden. She said she was concerned for their well-being.
3. Several people informed the service of a lonely-looking, very large ram hanging out in the area. One caller thought the animal was probably in need of a date.
4. Ten minutes after calling police about a suspicious rustling, purring bush, a caller decided they need to reach out to the conservation service too. They were worried it may be a cougar.
5. A lack of tadpoles in one caller’s pond had them concerned to the point that they decided they needed a conservation officer’s help.
6. A caller told the service there was an otter family in the area. That’s all.
7. A man called in a dead shrew and insisted a report needed to be made, despite officers advising they weren’t concerned about it.
8. A woman reported a badger building a den in her backyard. She said she wasn’t concerned, but wanted the service to know.
9. A caller witnessed a bear attacking a statue that looked like a person. This, they told the conservation service, was worrisome behaviour.
10. A caller couldn’t say what they had seen, but reported some kind of big, black and grey animals flying by their driveway.

READ ALSO: Otter with a toothache, cougar in a pink collar top most ‘unique’ calls for BC COS in 2021

READ ALSO: Kids drawing with chalk among B.C.’s most ridiculous 911 calls of 2022

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