What to do with Booba: Bull calf found wandering in Mooseland woods

The owner of a bull calf that was found in the woods in Mooseland, N.S., last week has been found.

Shannon Hudson, who has been caring for the calf since last week, said she was able to track down a man in Colchester County through the calf's tag on Monday.

"He had sold the calf, he's not sure how it got there," Hudson said. "He said he really had no use for it and didn't want it, but he was more than willing to pick it up."

Hudson was driving down the Moose River Road on Thursday when she was flagged down by a group of construction workers. She said they were the ones who found the calf.

"One of them came running over to the truck and he said, 'You drive a truck and you have a plaid shirt on, do you know what to do with this?' And I looked over and there was a little cow there," Hudson said.

"He was shivering and looked hypothermic so I looked around and in the middle of the woods — I figured I was his only chance at help."

Hudson stopped at a few dairy farms in the area to see if the calf belonged there. She said the people at the dairy farms were helpful in giving her tips on how to care for the calf.

Sensing the calf would soon use the bathroom in her truck, Hudson brought him to Moo Nay Farms in Cooks Brook, N.S., where she keeps a stable for horses.

She later named the calf Booba after a messy character on a Netflix show. She said Booba is doing much better now.

'Strange' find in the woods

"It's strange that the calf was there in the middle of the woods and it would be nice to have the answers," said Melvin Burns, owner of Moo Nay Farms.

Burns said Hudson texted him and asked if it would be OK if the calf could stay there until his owners could be located and he consented.

Burns said the calf appeared to be healthy when he was found and brought to the farm.

"It was in pretty good shape," he said. "It seemed like it was a little cut up from running through the woods."

Finding Booba's forever home

The bull calf isn't worth much money, Burns said, adding that they can sometimes be sold for as little as $5 at auction.

"Obviously, it costs farmers to care for them. In my opinion of seeing farmers who raise cattle, it's not something that somebody would do to just dump a calf in the woods. There has to be some kind of better reason than that," he said.

Hudson said because Booba's owner isn't interested in taking him back, she's considering other offers. She said there has been a lot of offers from other people to take him.

"I'll send him to the home that I see the best fit," she said.