In a rare rescue of sorts, a Colorado wildlife officer was forced to make a tough call after reports of an injured mule deer were received.
Responding to the call, officer Aaron Berscheid assessed the situation and discovered a piece of metal lodged in the animal’s hoof. Obviously causing the deer extreme pain, Berscheid made the call to sedate the animal and operate.
Today's #wildlife #rescue is a mule deer buck in #ColoradoSprings suffering from a piece of metal stuck on its hoof. @COParksWildlife Officer Aaron Berscheid responded and decided he might be able to sedate the buck, cut off the metal and give it a chance to recover. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/rPcgrp53ET
— CPW SE Region (@CPW_SE) August 4, 2023
While sedation always carries a certain amount of risk, wildlife officials are trained for these types of situations and will refrain from putting the animal at risk. He made the right call and after the roadside removal, the deer recovered and was back on the move.
CPW is reluctant to sedate wildlife because it can be so stressful on them that they die. In this case, CPW Officer Aaron Berscheid massaged and rocked the deer to revive it. After some tense minutes, the deer began to move. Ultimately, it sat up and recovered under a deck. 2/2 pic.twitter.com/5hBKydeFMc
— CPW SE Region (@CPW_SE) August 4, 2023
