Colorado Woman Gored by Neighbor’s Illegal Pet Deer

A Black Forest woman is in the hospital with serious injuries following an altercation with her neighbor’s illegal pet deer.

According to Denver7, the incident occurred on Friday (October 16) morning, when the deer approached the woman while she was walking her dog.

She reached out to pet the animal and it proceeded to gore her until she was able to escape to her garage.

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) officers later saw the deer acting aggressively, with blood on its antlers.

Authorities transferred the woman to a nearby hospital with cuts on her face and legs. A CPW officer euthanized the deer, as it had become “dangerously comfortable” around people.

Denver7 reports that the animal belonged to 73-year-old Tynette Housley, who had been raising the deer illegally for over a year.

“Wild animals are not pets,” Frank McGee, wildlife manager for the Pikes Peak region, told the station. “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.”

CPW officers gave Housley a citation and a warning for illegally possessing wildlife. As a result, she could receive over $1,000 in fines.

This is not the first deer-human interaction that McGee has seen this year. In June, officers had to euthanize a deer after it attacked a 5-year-old boy in Colorado Springs. 

Thankfully, the woman is expected to recover. If you do come across an injured or abandoned animal, report it to CPW here. 

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Source: Colorado Woman Gored by Neighbor’s Illegal Pet Deer