People visiting a UK park in the hope of seeing Christmas reindeer were greeted with a horrific sight — the bodies of several animals which had fallen through the ice and drowned.
The bodies and antlers of at least eight deer and stags could be seen protruding through the frozen lake at a Durham deer park, the Daily Mail reported.
Visitors could also see hoof marks leading to where the deer broke the ice and fell into the freezing lake.
Parents of children who were visiting the park, which promotes itself as an "authentic" place to celebrate Christmas, said they were stunned by the sight.
"My son was distressed and we did not feel comfortable," said a woman who was visiting with her eight-year-old son.
"It was an awful sight and nothing seems to be done about it."
Other children didn't notice the frozen animal corpses as they were so distracted by the other deer.
"It was a bit of a shock to see them trapped in the lake," said another man.
"Fortunately my kids didn't notice because the bodies are quite far out and there are plenty that are still alive that they can look at."
Park staff were aware of the danger the freezing weather posed to the wild animals but said it would be impossible to fence off the lake.
A spokesman for the RSPCA said it was examining the situation after concerned members of the public contacted them.
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