Several squadrons of Canadian Moose Riders were sent to South Africa for the Boer war, with mixed results. While fearsome and undoubtedly brave, the hot dry climate proved difficult to beasts used to humid conditions.

Undoubtedly their finest hour was during World War One, when teams of Canadian War Moose were decisive in victories over the Germans in Flanders and Belgium. In WWII, machine guns were mounted to the horns of armoured moose and used in key battles in France, Italy, and Poland. The giant ungulates were better adapted to the cold weather and the endless mud than horses. Sadly, the moose riders became obsolete before the Second World War and now exist mostly as an honour guard for the Governor General and to keep trouble-makers out of the Senate Chamber.

Mostly? Although that's their visual identity, the Moose Riders are still active in smaller communities, especially in their historical territories, where raiders will still occasionally sweep out of Nunavut to pillage wolverine farms, snow refineries, and Northern ice mines.

And then there are the parades, such as the one we saw. Popular with children, there's usually a squad for a Canada Day celebration, or some civic holiday like a sidewalk sale where 40 or more massive beasts with the daunting riders remind everyone of this country's proud hinterland heritage.

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