Every now and then, a heart-wrenching story will come along that leaves us smiling through the tears, and that of US dairy farmer Sean Steele is the latest.
Sean, from Alberta, has been praised for his quick-thinking, after performing a roadside C-section to save a dying doe’s fawn.
Sean was on a road trip through Canada when he came upon the poor creature, who had been struck by a vehicle and was very badly injured.
Alberta man saves fawn... performs roadside C-section. Full story on @CTVVancouver at 6pm. Courtesy: Michele Steele pic.twitter.com/wyHbL5X9WF
— Scott Hurst (@CTVScottHurst) June 16, 2016
Initially, Sean planned to put the animal out of her misery – but that was before he realised that she was pregnant and had gone into labour as a result of the accident.
A dairy farmer with plenty of experience delivering baby animals, Sean took out his pocketknife and performed a C-section on the doe, as the fawn was breech.
When Sean successfully delivered the fawn, he saw that she wasn’t breathing – so he tickled her nose with a blade of grass until she sneezed and began to breathe on her own.
Sean proceeded to drive the fawn to a local wildlife refuge, which has taken in the newborn and named her Friday.
Speaking to local news, refuge founder Angelika Langen described the whole incident as ‘pretty extraordinary’.
“The fawn is doing really well and the long-term outlook is that she will be released back to the wild in September or October,” she said.
Well done to Sean. We’re wishing little Friday all the best.
