Deer rescue by red-suited man on a sled goes viral
SALEM, Ore. — Reindeer are supposed to pull Santa Claus’ sleigh, but in Oregon recently, a red-suited man on a sled wound up pushing a deer.
The reverse-reality Christmasseason tale played out when a deer wandered onto a frozen golf course pond in Sunriver, Ore., last week and then lost its footing.
Try as it might, it couldn’t get all its legs underneath him. It skidded and slithered, and its legs buckled.
Along came firefighter Jeff “JJ” Johnston, astride a new ice-rescue sled that was as bright red as the suit he wore, and as the nose on Rudolph the reindeer
Benjamin O’Keefe, a captain in the fire department of the resort community, had his camera rolling. His video has become a sensation, garnering millions of views and picked up by broadcasters in the United States and overseas.
The young deer’s hind legs began pumping, but it couldn’t get up on its front legs. It was on an icy treadmill, going nowhere.
Johnston got close, spoke calming words to the deer and — slipping a bit himself as he tried to gain traction — gently pushed it with the front of the sled to the edge of the pond. Even then, the deer needed some coaxing. It seemed to have enjoyed the slippery ride.
Johnston tapped it on the head with the back of his gloved hand, then scratched the top of its head and ears, like you’d pet a dog.
The deer tried to get onto the sled before it turned around. Pushed once more to the snowy ground, it gained solid footing and, with a wave from Johnston, scampered off, presumably to join its mates in some deer games.
“JJ was talking to it the whole time,” said Tammie Waters, office manager for the Sunriver Fire Department. “The deer played along pretty good.”