The last place you want to be in the dead of winter is on thin ice. We often tell people they’re on thin ice when they are about to get in serious trouble, and with good reason. Falling into a freezing-cold lake is pretty much a death sentence.
Most humans are very careful in this respect, waiting until at least a month of sub zero temperatures before trusting a lake surface. But every year there are mistakes, whether a snowmobile operator underestimating the weight of their vehicle, or a hiker who fails to notice patches of thin ice caused by river run-off.
And it’s not just humans that make mistakes. We often think of wild animals as flawless creatures, gracefully prancing through nature. But they have lapses of judgment just like us. And, like the deer in this video, occasionally they find themselves on thin ice too.
Death is almost certain for the struggling deer, whose rapidly cooling body is unable to lift itself out of the water. Luckily, a nearby helicopter pilot spotted the poor animal and flew over to help. Wary of setting down the copter onto the untrustworthy ice, he got creative and decided to use the powers of his vehicle to help.
A couple of quick gusts of wind and the deer is pushed right back up onto the ice to safety. While the shivering mammal was probably confused as to what exactly happened, no doubt it has learned a valuable lesson about cutting across lakes.
