Daring deer rescue: A hands-on solution saves deer stranded on icy reservoir

CRANMOOR, Wis. (WMTV) - Gil Lencour could have kept driving when he spotted a deer stranded out in the middle of a frozen reservoir on his way home for lunch in Cranmoor Tuesday afternoon. But he knew he couldn’t leave the animal behind and stuck, so he decided to stage a daring deer rescue.

Lencour said after spotting the deer, he headed home to grab a leash, hoping that would help wrangle the deer to shore. He also called his friend, John Moss, to ask for a hand. Cranmoor is about 20 miles east of Wisconsin Rapids.

“She was struggling and I knew she needed help to get off the ice, I didn’t even think twice about it,” said Lencour. “She needed to get off the ice and I was the only one around to help her.”

When Moss arrived at the reservoir, Lencour said the deer started getting a bit agitated, trying to stand up. That’s when Lencour put his hands on her to try to calm her down, and came up with an idea.

“I just kind of put my hands on her and started pushing her,” he said. “I could slide her across the ice and just kept going, and got to the shore and she took off.”

Moss said when he realized his friend had the situation under control, he took out his cell phone and started filming.

“Obviously right away I was out there to help him but after he had it under control, then I was there for the show,” Moss said.

Lencour said the deer was probably about 90 pounds, and he was able to slide her to shore while wearing ice cleats. He said he drives by the reservoir every day, and knew it would be strong enough to hold him.

“I had a big smile on my face, I was happy that she was able to run off on her own,” he said.

“It was great to see that he was able to get her off the ice,” said Moss. “Who knows how long she was trapped there for and how long she was struggling. It was great to see her finally get back into the woods.”

With some final pushes, the deer got to its feet, scrambled up the bank, and ran off into the woods.

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