Elle Wapiti was finally released from a heavy 16kg car tire around the neck after two years

The four-and-a-half-year-old male had to be anesthetized first. After that, his horns were removed, too, the Colorado District Parks and Wildlife Twitter account wrote. “We would have preferred to cut the tire to save the antlers,” Wildlife Director Scott Murdoch said in a statement Monday. But there was no other choice. Inside the wheel was a steel tire that they couldn’t cut through.

The animal sustained a small wound from the rescue, and also lost some hair from its neck.

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The male has had to carry a few kilograms with him for the past two years. The tire became very heavy, because it contained all kinds of pine needles and dirt. At one point, the handicap weighed 16 pounds. So the deer was in very good shape after removal.

rotting season

The deer was first spotted in 2019 with a band around its neck. The animal, which weighs 270 kilograms, was seen in several places but disappeared in the winter for a longer time.

Previous attempts to save the animal were hampered because conservationists couldn’t get close enough. But with the season now spoiling, it finally worked.