An adult male white-tailed deer was safely rescued on January 31 after falling into a 30-foot deep tank at the Duffin Creek Water Pollution Control Plant in Pickering, Ontario.
The Toronto Wildlife Centre (TWC), which performed and recorded the rescue, said the deer had been trapped overnight, but managed to find a shallower overflow area to avoid deep water.
“He’d been battling freezing temperatures all night, so he was quite defeated,” said Sarrah Castillo, assistant manager of the TWC rescue and release team.
The TWC team’s biggest concern was that the deer would panic during the rescue and fall into deeper water, so the rescue team shot the deer with a “chemical immobilization” dart to safely remove him from the settling tank.
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The TCW rescue team said that wastewater facility personnel were “on board” with anything the team required.
“We’re really grateful for that,” said Andrew Wight, TWC rescue team manager.
Wastewater facility personnel used a crane and ladder to load the deer onto a wooden board after receiving animal handling guidance from the TWC rescue team. The deer was then safely lifted out of the tank and had minor injuries assessed by on-site veterinary staff.
The deer was treated and determined to be healthy enough to be released back into a forested area.
The Duffin Creek Water Pollution Plant, while in Pickering, is operated by the Region of Durham.
