BANGKOK, Thailand – A desperate overnight rescue at a private park in Bangkok saved ten deer but failed to prevent nine deaths after rising floodwater trapped the animals, with one more still undergoing treatment. Chanya Tamada, president of the Little Paws Adoption Center, said teams from Huai Sai Wildlife Park, the Wildlife Friends Foundation Thailand, Siam Amazing Park and veterinary specialists battled through the night to move the animals to safety.

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Chanya had issued an urgent appeal on Sunday for help, hoping the deer could be saved before dawn, and requested 500 bales of hay, a 10-wheel truck and cages for birds, rabbits and chickens. By 3.30am on Monday she confirmed the operation had ended: “We all did our very best, and we are deeply saddened by the lives we could not save in time.”

Deep water left some deer with only their heads above the surface, and the animals were severely weakened after hours submerged. Around 3am, an attempt to move one deer was abandoned after it panicked when rescuers brought in sandbags. A vet warned the animal risked muscle breakdown and shock, prompting the team to leave the sandbags at the park entrance in the hope staff could use them to keep the deer alive until morning, with plans to return.

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The animals’ plight emerged after Facebook user Nithiwan Promnukrauh appealed for wildlife vets to help, saying she had already taken one deer for treatment. Chanya thanked the public, volunteers and agencies who joined the effort, saying she was moved by support from strangers, and urged businesses keeping animals — zoos, animal cafes and others — to prepare clear emergency plans, veterinary teams and safe evacuation measures, stressing that caring for wildlife is a serious responsibility.

-Thailand News (TN)