Have You Noticed This Random Issue We’ve Been Having in Maine?

The irony of this whole "issue" is most people come to Maine to escape their problems. They don't call us Vacationland for no reason, ya know? Tourists come here throughout the summer to escape their real lives and enjoy some time away from reality -- hell, locals will escape to different parts of the state to do the same.

And while this isn't necessarily a "problem," it's definitely been something that's been happening a decent amount over the last year.

Animals on the Loose in Maine

Over the last year, there have been three specific times (and probably even more that we just didn't make as big of a deal about) where animals have randomly gotten loose throughout Maine.

Monkey in Portland, Maine

The first case was about a year ago in July 2022 when Mainers and tourists randomly kept talking about a monkey they saw bouncing (no word if it was a literal bounce or not) around Portland.

At first it was thought to be a chipmunk or squirrel, but eventually, enough people clearly spotted and talked about the animal that it was confirmed to be a monkey. It was mostly seen on Congress Street near Tandem Coffee and Bakery.

The ironic thing is, as quickly as Mainers and tourists started talking about it, the monkey seemed to disappear and no one knows what happened to it. (Or, at least, no one mentioned anything if they do know.)

Ram  in Cape Elizabeth, Maine

Just last month, it happened again, when a ram was on the loose (or, as most of the headlines said, a "ram was on the lam") in Cape Elizabeth, with accounts of it being spotted in the parking lot of Crescent Beach State Park before making its way over to Broad Cove, where it paused for some photo ops.

After two weeks, according to News Center MAINE, sheep wool was placed near Two Lights State Park after reports of the ram hanging around there came in, and eventually, it was captured.

Moose in Auburn, Maine

And the latest incident happened just the other day, according to CBS 13,  when a moose was seen on Pleasant Street in Auburn roaming around the fenced-in park area at The Chapman House.

According to Auburn Police, minutes after they arrived on the scene and saw the moose walking around the enclosed park, it randomly hopped the fence and bolted toward Minot Avenue, where it dodged traffic and safely escaped into the wooded area nearby.

What a time to be alive! (And hopefully, remain uninjured from all of these random animals getting loose throughout the state -- and hopefully they remain uninjured, too!)