WARNING: This story contains graphic photos.
A Colorado woman was gored by a mule deer buck outside her home and suffered a puncture wound to her leg, according to officials.
The 67-year-old woman was outside the door of her home in the town of Silver Cliff when she was attacked by a small buck mule deer on Saturday, Colorado Parks and Wildlife said in a news release. The agency said its officers are searching for the animal, which had two spikes on each antler, and will euthanize it if they find it.
The woman sustained a puncture wound to her left leg and significant bruising on the right leg, according to the release. She was able to make it back inside her home and call her husband and was transported to a hospital for treatment.
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After the attack, two young bucks were observed sparring in the woman’s yard, a common behavior during mating season, the agency said.
CPW suspects that the buck may have been attracted to the woman’s home because of a bird feeder on the property.
“A wildlife officer went to investigate and found a bird feeder in the yard,” Mike Brown, CPW Area Wildlife Manager in the region, said in the release. “The victim told a CPW officer that she feeds birds and had thrown out bread earlier that day.”
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Brown said that the attack happening so close to the woman’s home led officials to believe someone may have been feeding the deer, causing it to lose its fear of people.
“I believe this is a good example of what happens when deer lose their natural fear of humans,” Brown said. “They become aggressive and dangerous. This is a good reminder that wild animals should always be treated as such and that people need to give wildlife the space they need.”
“We’re glad this woman wasn’t more seriously injured,” he added.
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