Courageous Deer Rescue on Thin Ice

Occurred on January 17, 2022 / Snake River Highway, Oregon, USA

Info from Licensor: I was driving a back country highway between two small towns in eastern Oregon along the Snake River dividing Oregon and Idaho looking for potential customers for my scrap metal and auto salvage business. I came around a corner and spotted this yearling doe deer on the ice struggling to get her footing, so I chose to jump to action. I filmed and took photos purely in case I fell through the ice and didn't survive, there would be closure for Friends and family. As it turned out, I'm still here and the animal was retrieved from the ice. We (the deer and I) sat on the shore as I started a warming fire and went back to the pickup to grab a few towels and rags to warm the animal up. we sat on the beach together for an hour or so as I rubbed the deer trying to create some heat and get her moving. Her pelvic bone had broken in the fall on the ice and was keeping her from standing on her own, she was also becoming hypothermic. As we sat by the fire my phone had 1 bar of service that would come and go, I made a call to the local sheriff's office to let them know about the situation.

Unfortunately, due to the animal's worsening hypothermia and broken rear section, the decision by law enforcement and game agencies was to put her down. All for not? Some would say yes, but I believe I helped to minimize the deer's suffering. As an outdoors man and hunter, I have a love and respect for these magnificent animals and the harsh terms that mother nature greets them with every winter.