Watch: Troopers rescue 2 deer 'on their last leg' in freezing Alaskan waters
Two deer stuck in the freezing waters of Alaska's Clarence Strait got a lift back to shore from wildlife troopers who spotted the desperate animals on their way back from patrol.
Alaska Wildlife Troopers Kyle Fuege and Sgt. Mark Finses were returning to the town of Ketchikan from Earnest Sound on Oct. 10 when they spotted the deer looking tired and stressed, agency spokesman Justin Freeman told the Associated Press.
The deer were about 4 miles offshore before the troopers pulled them to the safety of the boat, according to a Youtube video of the rescue posted on Oct. 14.
"They are in rough shape, like on their last leg," one of the troopers says as the boat makes its way to land.
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As soon as the troopers saw the struggling deer, Freeman said they turned off the engine to avoid scaring them.
“Both deer ran into the side of the boat with their heads, indicating they wanted on board,” Freeman told the Anchorage Daily News. “The deer quickly swam over to the troopers on the swim step and let the troopers remove them from the water and place them on the back deck.”
The video posted by the troopers shows the deer sitting in the boat and shivering.
"This guy at the back is doing pretty rough," one of them says. "He didn't fight us too hard, but we got him on."
The troopers got the deer to land but they initially struggled to even walk.
“I had to pick them up and bear hug them to get them off our deck and get them on the beach," one of the troopers says. “I’m soaked to the bone."
After about five minutes, they were able to get up and trot around, Freeman said.
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Freeman said it's common for deer to swim between islands in southeast Alaska but it's quite uncommon for them to try to get into a boat.
Freeman told the Anchorage Daily News that the deer were struggling against the current and did not appear to be swimming toward any particular place when the troopers saw them.
Luckily, he said, "the deer ended up being totally OK."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 2 desperate deer rescued from Alaska's freezing Clarence Strait
