A few weeks ago, a herd of deer wandered through a forest in New Jersey, following their usual grazing route. The area was divided by a river that ran through a deep ravine lined with tall cement walls—seven to ten feet high and stretching for miles.
At some point, one deer lost his footing—or perhaps got startled—and fell into the ravine. Injured and disoriented, he found himself trapped with no way to climb out. For nearly two weeks, he waited alone while his herd lingered nearby, calling out to him from above.
When local residents finally noticed the stranded deer, they called animal control. After assessing the situation, officers realized they couldn’t perform the rescue themselves. That’s when they contacted Nancy Warner, president and founder of The Last Resort Wildlife Refuge.
“We walked two miles in each direction and couldn’t find an exit point,” Warner told The Dodo. “So, we realized he’s going to have to come up and out.”
With storms forecast to arrive within 48 hours, time was running out. Rising water could have easily ended the deer’s story in tragedy.
Since The Last Resort isn’t authorized to sedate deer, Warner decided to take a creative approach. She called on volunteer and carpenter Sandy Platt Mantione to help her build a custom staircase that the deer could climb to freedom.
“We were racing against daylight and that storm,” Warner said. “We loaded up our trailer with all the wood and supplies, got down there, and lowered everything in.”
To Warner’s surprise, the deer didn’t panic.
“He knew we were there to help him,” she said. “He was actually watching us the whole time.”
For nearly three hours, the small team—Warner, Mantione, and volunteers from Associated Humane Societies Newark—constructed sturdy wooden stairs wide enough for the deer’s four legs and gentle enough to accommodate his injury. Warner even added small trim pieces for the animal to push off with his back legs as he climbed.
Once the staircase was ready, they sprinkled food pellets along the steps and quietly left. Within minutes, the deer approached, sniffed around, and started climbing.
Fifteen minutes later, he reached the top—safe, free, and ready to rejoin his herd.
Warner later confirmed his injury was only a mild soft-tissue strain, and he’s expected to have made a full recovery. Reflecting on the rescue, she wrote:
“We had no idea if it would work. But we had to try.”