Deer Jumps Into Swim Class With California Kids In Pool, Startles Unsuspecting Students

A deer wanted to join some children and learn how to swim at a Berkeley, California, pool Thursday, leaving the pool staff to have to help the creature get out of the water after it jumped in.

After the deer, which was reportedly not large, jumped into the water, the staff knew they had to get to work to make sure all of the aspiring swimmers in the pool stayed safe and didn’t end up on that casualty list. They ushered the children out of the water. Then, not one, but two, staff members reentered the pool with flotation devices and helped the deer in its quest not to drown. They steered the animal to the pool steps where, upon exiting the pool, the deer left the scene.

“No one was in danger, but we needed time to get the children out of the pool,” Denise Brown, the manager of the city of Berkeley’s recreation and youth services, told ABC News, and elaborated on the training lifeguards and swim instructors receive. “Our staff were trained in dealing with lots of emergencies — but never a deer in the pool.”

According to this video showing a deer swimming in either a river or a lake, some members of the species can swim.

A father took a picture of the deer getting rescued by the staff, according local news source Berkleyside. Later, when asked, the dad, Jeff Johnston, said that the children who had been in the water were excited by the disruption to their scheduled class.

“The kids got a kick out of all the excitement!” Johnston said afterward.