FAIRBANKS — It’s OK to use a Taser to stun a mugger, but you shouldn’t do the same to a moose — unless it’s about to stomp you.

The Alaska Board of Game passed a statewide proposal prohibiting the use of electronic control devices, aka Tasers, for hunting, but the new regulation does not prevent people from using a Taser on animals in defense of life and property.

According to a press release issued by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game on Thursday, the department submitted the proposal after media attention about the use of Tasers on wildlife, particularly bears and moose, and subsequent public and wildlife safety concerns related to their use.

“The department recognized the lack of authority to regulate the use of (Tasers) on wildlife and brought the concern to the Board of Game,” the press release stated. “Restricting the use of (Tasers) will reduce the risk of improper or unethical use on wildlife by the public or other agency personnel who are unfamiliar with the potential effects and hazards.”

The action was taken during a March 26-30 Board of Game meeting in Anchorage.

ADF&G Soldotna biologist Larry Lewis, the department’s Taser expert, wrote the proposal that was passed by the Game Board.

“This is referencing all use of (Tasers) for incapacitation of game in Alaska,” Lewis said.

The department isn’t as concerned with a hunter killing a moose or bear with a Taser as it is “catch and release hunting,” Lewis said.

“Conceivably someone could Tase a moose or bear, go up and get a picture taken with it, shut the (Taser) off and then release the animal,” he said.

With no regulations on the book to outlaw such an action, “it’s ripe for abuse,” Lewis said.

“What we wanted to do was kind of head off at the pass any non-trained use of this equipment,” he said.

ADF&G staff and personnel from other agencies, such as law enforcement, may be authorized to use Tasers on wildlife, but only after going through an intensive training course taught by Lewis, a certified Taser master instructor and receiving a permit. About 25 state wildlife biologists have been trained in the use of Tasers on wildlife so far, Lewis said.

Wildlife biologists in Fairbanks unsuccessfully used a Taser on a cow moose a little more than two months ago in an attempt to stun it so they could remove a rope from its neck. The moose had been roaming an east Fairbanks neighborhood with the rope since early January, when residents rescued the moose from the Chena River.

Biologists used a special wildlife Taser on Feb. 4 in the Hamilton Acres subdivision but could not get the probes to stick, which they attributed to the animal’s thick winter hair.

It was the first time state wildlife officials used a Taser on an animal in the northern region of the state.

Lewis said he has used a Taser to haze bears and moose on the Kenai Peninsula and it has been effective. He called a Taser “an electric fence in a person’s hand.”

“With all the animals, we’ve seen a 100 percent flight response and an aversion to the area it took place,” Lewis said. “They learn not to be in that place.”

Lewis also used a Taser to stun a moose so he could remove a chicken feeder stuck on its head.

“I was able to knock it down, remove the feeder, examine the animal for injuries and release it,” Lewis said.

A Taser also can be used to examine animals with injuries to see if they are suffering from a mortal wound, Lewis said.

“What people need to understand is that a Taser is one piece of equipment a wildlife first responder can use,” he said. “It’s another tool.”

Using a Taser means biologists don’t have to use tranquilizers, which can be dangerous or deadly for the animal.

“It takes away the safety issues involved with using drugs,” Lewis said.

The department does not endorse the use of a Taser as a primary means of defense from an attacking animal, Lewis said.

Contact staff writer Tim Mowry at 459-7587.