Collisions between moving cars and wildlife don’t usually end in favor of the animal, but this little deer had an incredible stroke of good luck.
The incident happened on the A404, close to the M4 junction at Altwood, near Maidenhead, Berkshire, and was brought to a happy ending by Anthony Gooch, who runs a recovery service, the Daily Mail reports.
Gooch received the call about a stranded vehicle and went to see what the trouble was. Apparently, it was the driver who had called him and he was freaking out because he saw he had hit something on the road. However, whatever it was, he couldn’t find it.
That’s because the deer had gotten stuck in the grille of the car, Gooch tells the publication. The 85-year-old man driving the car was too spooked to look there for the animal and presumably didn’t even hear it cry.
Surprisingly, the deer’s injuries were minimal. Gooch helped it out from the unlikely trap and noticed that it had broken one of its hind legs. The animal was understandably scared, but otherwise not in any visible pain. It even accepted him petting it; he ended up naming it Bambi.
“How it didn't die, I'll never know. The driver was in shock. He assumed it would have been splattered all over the front, but when he pulled over, there was nothing,” Gooch says.
“I went round the back of the car and looked underneath and I could just see its little legs dangling down,” he adds.
The driver told Gooch that he was driving at more than 50mph at the moment of impact, which makes the deer’s survival all the more amazing. The deer, aka Bambi, was handed over to the RSPCA for treatment and will be released back into the wild once it’s recovered from its injury.
Gooch received the call about a stranded vehicle and went to see what the trouble was. Apparently, it was the driver who had called him and he was freaking out because he saw he had hit something on the road. However, whatever it was, he couldn’t find it.
That’s because the deer had gotten stuck in the grille of the car, Gooch tells the publication. The 85-year-old man driving the car was too spooked to look there for the animal and presumably didn’t even hear it cry.
Surprisingly, the deer’s injuries were minimal. Gooch helped it out from the unlikely trap and noticed that it had broken one of its hind legs. The animal was understandably scared, but otherwise not in any visible pain. It even accepted him petting it; he ended up naming it Bambi.
“How it didn't die, I'll never know. The driver was in shock. He assumed it would have been splattered all over the front, but when he pulled over, there was nothing,” Gooch says.
“I went round the back of the car and looked underneath and I could just see its little legs dangling down,” he adds.
The driver told Gooch that he was driving at more than 50mph at the moment of impact, which makes the deer’s survival all the more amazing. The deer, aka Bambi, was handed over to the RSPCA for treatment and will be released back into the wild once it’s recovered from its injury.