Look, we’re all going through it with the summer heat wave. All of us: adults, children, dogs… deer. That’s certainly the case for one New Jersey woodland creature who decided to take a dip in a residential pool earlier this week, just chilling amongst the pool floaties in an apparent attempt to beat the all-consuming heat.
The Township of Hamilton Police Department shared their amusing animal encounter on Facebook on Monday, retelling the story of the lap-swimming deer who figured out a smart way to take advantage of human development in its homeland.
“This little cutie decided that it was a bit too humid out today and was looking for some relief!” the police explained in their post. “Officers Thumhart, Bakker and McCarthy were able to use the deer rescue training they learned in the academy (not really) to safely remove the deer from the pool. It then decided to take in some sun and relax for a few minutes, before running back into the woods to spread the word!”
From the photos, it appears the police were able to remove the deer from the water without any incidences; you can see it reclining, seemingly relaxed, as the officers snapped some images with their new friend. While it’s unclear if its swim was intentional or not, the pool owner might want to keep an eye out for return visits: we are in for plenty more warm weather through the rest of August.
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Write to Raisa Bruner at raisa.bruner@time.com