A Colorado woman was cited with two misdemeanors for illegally raising a young deer that attacked and gored one of her neighbors, according to state wildlife officials.
The buck attacked a woman walking her dog on Friday in Black Forest north of Colorado Springs, according to a statement from Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The victim said she was surprised when the deer started following her and then knocked her to the ground and gored her with its two-pronged antlers.
“The victim tried to run to a neighbor’s house and then to her own home. Repeatedly, the deer knocked her down and gored her. The deer even continued to attack as she frantically opened her garage door. It relented only when she ran between two cars in her garage,” la declaración decía.
The woman suffered serious lacerations to her head, cheek and legs and bruises and was hospitalized overnight for treatment of her injuries before being released, los funcionarios dijeron.
The deer’s antlers had fresh bloodstains on them when it was euthanized.
The deer approached a CPW officer who was called to investigate the incident, de acuerdo con el comunicado. The officer euthanized the deer and took it to the department’s animal health lab in Fort Collins to test it for rabies and other diseases.
Tynette Housley, 73, told wildlife officials that she brought a days-old fawn that turned into a young buck into her home over a year ago, according to the CPW statement.
Housley was cited for illegal possession of wildlife and illegally feeding wildlife. The misdemeanors carry fines and surcharges that total slightly more than $ 1,000. She was also given a warning for possessing live wildlife without a license after describing that she kept the deer in her home, then in her garage and then on her property, according to the agency.
“We can’t say it enough: Wild animals are not pets,” said Frank McGee, CPW’s area wildlife manager for the Pikes Peak region. “Feeding deer habituates them to humans. They lose their fear of humans and that leads to these outcomes that are tragic for both wildlife and people. Injured and orphaned wildlife should be taken to licensed wildlife rehabilitators.”
