Deer spends six months with hammock stuck to his antlers, finally rescued

A deer near Lake Natoma in California in the United States that spent over six months with the remains of a hammock stuck to his antlers has finally been rescued.

According to reports, the animal got entangled with a blue hammock during the summer near Lake Natoma. Unfortunately, members of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) weren't able to track down the buck quickly.

With the blue hammock on its antlers, the buck soon turned into a local celebrity of sorts.

Members of CDFW managed to locate the animal just a few days before Christmas. Once they had him in sight, they tranquilised him and removed his antlers for protection from poaching, according to reports.

People tend to grossly oversimplify the animal-capture process. We showed up in the dark and basically ambushed the deer. We were in full camouflage. This animal had no idea we were there. My partner got a good dart in the right spot which is generally the major muscle groups,” Captain Patrick Foy of the CDFW told CBS Sacramento.

CDFW shared a picture of the buck on Facebook.

"This handsome buck was lured too close to a hammock and other life-threatening human hazards by Fair Oaks residents who were feeding it illegally. It took weeks to capture the skittish buck to free it from the entanglement," CDFW wrote.

Last month, firefighters in Kansas had rescued a deer from the ice-cold waters of a frozen lake in the town of Edgerton.

Assistant sheriff's deputies were the first responders who tried getting the animal to safety. They eventually had to call the fire service for a full-fledged rescue mission.

Johnson County Government Emergency Communications Centre called in the fire service after they received a request for help from the Johnson County Sheriff's Assistance.

The deer was in the icy-cold waters about 50 feet from the shore and the rescuers had to work quickly to ensure the animal's survival. A property owner said the deer was in the freezing water for more than 20 minutes until help arrived.