A healthy six-legged deer found in North Georgia now has a safe home.

The deer was discovered when a dog chased it down last week in Armuchee, near the Floyd-Chattooga county line.

The dog’s owners rescued the fawn, and eventually it was taken to George Gallagher’s house. Dr. Gallagher is a professor of animal science at Berry College in Rome.

“Obviously, its anatomy is very, very unique,” Dr. Gallagher said.

The fawn had minor injuries, and in addition to its six legs, it had two tails. One of those was amputated.

“We got him to where he was in great shape and eating from a bottle,” Dr. Gallagher said. “The big question was, what to do with an animal like this.”

He said he and other scientists did not want the animal to become a “circus side-show,” and they were not able to release it back to the wild because of its condition.

Finally they found a woman from Athens, Ga., who has the needed permits to keep deer and other unique animals in captivity.

Spokesman for Berry College, Rick Woodall, said the deer caused “quite a sensation” at the college, and attracted national notice.

Dr. Gallagher said animal had two complete pelvis and limb assemblies.

“It is relatively unusual, but it is thought to be a similar condition that shows up with what we call Siamese twins in humans,” Dr. Gallagher said. “You start with one fertilized egg or embryo, and it splits into two identical twins and you end up, in this case, with about one and a third.”

The fawn has two distinct pelvises and uses one leg from each pelvis to walk and run. Dr. Gallagher said the deer had learned how to run quickly.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said. “It could run just as fast as a true, wild, four-legged deer.”

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