Deer rescued from ice euthanized due to injuries

It wasn’t for a lack of trying or the best of intentions.

The Medical Lake Fire Department was called Monday to Medical Lake after dispatchers received multiple calls about a deer stranded in the ice.

Firefighters responded with ice rescue equipment and went onto the ice to assess the situation. They found the injured deer about 200 feet from the south shore of the lake and attempted to make a rescue.

“Surprisingly, the deer allowed them to put a rope around it,” MLFD Chief Jason Mayfield said.

Unfortunately, the deer was injured and unable to walk, so firefighters called the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife.

Veteran WSDFW Sergeant Mike Sprecher, a 22-year veteran of the department, arrived and assessed the animal’s wounds. The female deer was unable to stand due to injuries to its hind legs, likely incurred during efforts to save itself on the ice.

“There was nothing there — she had no function of the rear two legs,” Sprecher observed. “The injury was severe enough that I had to put her down.”

He took the animal off-site to be euthanized.

“We all like feel-good stories,” Sprecher said. “Unfortunately the injury was too severe.”

He commended the MLFD for their rescue efforts.

“The fire crew did a great job of getting her off the ice.”

Lee Hughes can be reached at [email protected]