05:45 PM PDT on Friday, July 14, 2006

Associated Press

JOSEPH, Ore. -- Talk about a deer lick.

File photo

In the eastern Oregon town of Joseph recently, passersby gave an injured deer mouth-to-mouth resuscitation after it was hit by a vehicle.

Wallowa County Detective Neil Rogers recounts the story.

Rogers says when he got there, a crowd of people were pulling a deer from beneath a trailer.

The deer was badly hurt but managed to get up and stumble away.

Rogers said when he parked his cruiser -- one member of the crowd was giving the deer compressions to start its heart -- and another was giving it mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Rogers said he could barely look at the scene because he was starting to laugh too hard.

But the deer was too injured to survive. Rogers took the deer behind a building and shot it.

Rogers said he didn't know the would-be rescuer and speculated he wasn't a local -- but perhaps from Portland.