Short Stories » The Rescue of a Deer

The Rescue of a Deer - Panchatantra Stories for Kids

A crow, a turtle and a rat were busy in their daily discussion near the river bank. Suddenly, they saw a frightened deer running towards the river. Immediately, the crow flew to the top of the tree. The rat scurried into the nearby hole. The turtle submerged himself in the river. From the tree top, the crow could see clearly, he told his friends. Hey! Friends don’t be afraid. He is only thirsty and he ran here to quench his thirst. There is nothing suspicious. There are no footmarks of any hunter.

The turtle said, “Look! He is gasping, it appears, someone is after him. He didn’t come here to drink water.” The Turtle said to the crow, “Please go to the tallest tree and try to see what is actually going on!!”

After some time, they all became friends. The deer named, Chitranga, told them, “Friends, you guessed it right. I’m in danger, a hunter is after me. Please help me. Tell me where should I hide to escape from this hunter?”

“If you are in danger, you should either fight or flight. This is the words of a wise scholar. Now, it is time to relax because you have taken the flight,” said the turtle.

The crow said, “No, do not go anywhere. Maybe the hunter has caught another animal. He is going back.”

The crow said, “Hey friends come out. We are safe now. From today onwards, we are four best friends.”

One day, Chitranga didn’t come to meet his friends. All the other three started panicking. “He may be in danger,” said the turtle.

The turtle said to the crow, “Friends you know, neither the rat nor I can move fast. You please go and look out for Chitranga. We want to know, what happened?”

The crow flew and not far away, he saw the deer was trapped in the net of the hunter. Chitranga was in very critical condition. As Chitranga saw the crow, tears rolled down from his eyes. “I can feel the icy touch of death. I cannot believe you came for me,” he said.

The crow replied, “Chitranga don’t lose hope. Control yourself, we will help you.” The crow flew back to the rat said him everything. The rat hurriedly reached the place and bit off the net with his sharp teeth. Thus they saved the life of Chitranga again.

As they were standing and chatting together, the turtle came crawling slowly.

The crow said, “Look at this slow-moving turtle.” He asked the turtle, “Why did you come here? If the hunter comes here, how will you save yourself?”

Before the turtle could give an answer, the hunter appeared.

The rat, Chitranga and the crow rushed inside the deep jungle. When hunter saw the empty net, he became very angry. He immediately grasped the poor turtle and covered him using the torn net strings.

The crow saw the whole thing from the tree. He called his friends and told them to do as planned. Therefore, both deer and rat started following the hunter.

According to the plan, the deer laid down near the river banks, acting as if he was dead. When the hunter saw the motionless deer, he put the turtle on the ground. When hunter was about to catch the deer, Chitranga ran into the dense forest. When the hunter turned back, the crow threatened to peck in his eyes. Meanwhile, the rat instantly bit off the net strings. The turtle quietly sank into the river and escaped.

Moral: Good friends are a luxury and using your wisdom one can overcome even adverse conditions.