Bear Creek, NC – Talk about a wild Friday night! Chatham County Sheriff’s Office Deputy John Lacy experienced just that on the evening of November 17. At approximately 8:30 p.m., John was dispatched to handle an unusual call at a Bear Creek residence, where two deer had leapt into an above-ground swimming pool from which they could not escape on their own.
“This one was a first for me,” said John, who joined the Sheriff’s Office’s Animal Resource Center in January.
But that didn’t dampen his determination to rescue the animals or stifle his creativity in devising a successful method. The pool, measuring about six feet at its deepest point, was not only an unexpected obstacle for the two stranded deer, but it also proved to be a challenge for the deputy. It’s the sort of task for which there are few opportunities to train other than on the job.
Arriving on the scene, the deputy assessed the situation and devised a strategy to assist the animals in a safe escape.
To aid the deer’s getaway, the deputy placed one end of an aluminum ladder in the swimming pool, positioning the other end on the pool’s edge to form makeshift steps. A few minutes later, the buck, displaying his own shrewd sense of the situation, utilized the ladder to free himself from the water and clear the pool’s confines.
Once free of his watery constraints, the buck ran off into the woods.
The doe, however, proved to be a bit more hesitant. Undetered, John demonstrated further resourcefulness by retrieving a lasso from his vehicle. With skill and patience, he safely lassoed the doe to guide her to the pool’s edge to better assist her out of the water.
It took a bit more time to free the doe, but once out, she spent the next few minutes quietly recovering from the stress of the situation before eventually standing and following the buck to freedom in the woods.
The successful rescue showcased the commitment and adaptability of the members of the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office in handling unexpected and unique situations.
“You never know what you’re going to see or run into,” John good-naturedly observed of the diverse and
unpredictable nature of law enforcement and animal control duties. “This was definitely one of the more
unusual calls.”