A Goldendoodle named Harley recently saved a fawn from drowning in the waters of a lake. The dog refused to leave its side and even sat by it once it had been rescued, refusing all offers of food or drink for hours. “We could tell right away, even as a puppy, he had such a good heart,” Ralph Dorn, the heroic Goldendoodle’s owner said about his six-year-old canine with gold fur who is now being hailed as hero after rescuing an abandoned fawn from Lake Anna on Tuesday evening.
It all began June 2nd 2021 behind the family home. Ralph noticed that his dog Harley was 200 feet out in the lake swimming with that appeared to be another animal! After closer inspection he noticed that it was a baby deer.
“Not sure how the fawn got out there but Harley obviously didn’t ask why, he just jumped into action,” Said Dorn, 62, of Culpeper, Virginia on a Facebook post.
“I couldn’t find Harley this evening until I looked out on the lake. He was near the middle of the lake herding a little fawn back to the shore line. Not sure how the fawn got out there but Harley obviously didn’t ask why, he just jumped into action.
Mama did come back
The story continues. This morning Harley got restless running from window to window. I opened the front door and we could hear the fawn bleating. Harley ran into the tree line and found the fawn. The little one stopped bleating, tail wagging, they touched noses sniffed each other and Harley came calmly back to the house with me.” https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fralph.dorn.5%2Fposts%2F4048171178624386&show_text=true&width=500
Harley Guided the Baby Deer to Shore
The heroic Goldendoodle swam with the baby deer till it reached the shore. He then lifted it out of the water and put her in the grass. After that Harley began to lick the baby deer’s body to clean off the excess water. The fawn appeared to only be a few days old according to Ralph Dorn.
“Harley didn’t want to leave the fawn,” Dorn reported. “He just kept interacting with it, licking it, caring for it.”
What happened when the Mama Deer Came Back?
Once Ralph and Harley saw that the Mama deer had returned they moved inside their home and watched from inside. Once they were inside the Mama moved in an took her baby back.
The Story Doesn’t End There
The next morning Ralph and his wife Patricia were drinking their morning coffee when they noticed that Harley was in a tizzy.
Harley ran into the tree line and found the fawn,” Ralph Dorn wrote. “The little one stopped bleating, tail wagging, they touched noses sniffed each other and Harley came calmly back to the house with me.”
After seeing Harley the baby deer settled down. By the end of the day the fawn and doe had moved on.
Harley’s Actions Didn’t Surprise His Family at all
“We could tell right away, even as a puppy, he had such a good heart,” says Dorn. “He has always been like that with children and animals. He loves them all.” They also mentioned that he has a kitty best friend that he snuggles named Zsu Zsu.
Harley has worked as a certified therapy dog and enjoys visiting elderly residence of a local care facility. He also enjoys spending time with kids during reading time in the local library.
Harley is also great with the Dorn’s 4 Grandkids. “He’s 100 percent glued to them,” says Dorn.
The Dorn’s Were Shocked That the Story Drew in so much attention
“We were just amazed,” says Pat. “We had no idea of the reaction.”
We’re very happy that it has touched so many people,” Ralph says, “and brought joy to so many as well.”