Man Saves Deer Stranded on Frozen Ontario Lake

A man from Ontario, Canada, managed to save three deer stranded on a frozen lake after coming across them while out skating on his lunch break on December 3.

Ryan Peterson told Storyful he knew it was a race against time to rescue the deer from the lake. “I went back to work and grabbed some rope. The ice was still too thin for any kind of vehicle, so skating was the only option,” Peterson said.

After managing to tie the rope around each of the animals, Peterson dragged the deer to the edge of the ice, where they were able to regain their footing and safely stand.

“The two younger ones took off running right away, but the doe stuck around with what seemed like an injured hip or leg,” Peterson said. He called the Ontario Natural Resources Ministry but was told that since the lake was not entirely frozen, it would not be safe for anyone to immediately visit the scene to further assess the situation.

Peterson told Storyful he returned to work happy to have been in the right place at the right time. Credit: Ryan Peterson via Storyful