SHAWNEE, Okla. – A Shawnee man is recovering from wounds suffered during a bizarre encounter with a defensive deer.
In a video on Facebook, the deer can be see charging, forcing Travis Hurst to try and hold the buck to avoid his sharp antlers.
Hurst was putting together a bonfire for his church on Wednesday night when a buck came out of the woods and straight up to them.
“He gets closer and closer and we’re thinking, ‘Well, we might feed him or something,’” said Hurst.
Then, the deer charged Hurst.
“He stabs my legs and stabs my arms and everything,” said Hurst. “He’s wearing me smooth out and finally, I am able to let him go.”
After about five minutes, the deer eventually turned around and went back into the woods.
“He got the best of me,” said Hurst. “I think that he`s had some human contact because he wasn’t afraid of us at all.”
Capt. Wade Farrar, with the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife, agrees, saying the deer was likely hand raised by someone he isn’t scared of humans.
Farrar says deer are in rut right now, meaning they’re frisky and ready to fight.
“He’s going to try to act like a big bad deer and if he thinks we are a threat, then he’s going to treat us just like he would a big buck out in the woods,” said Farrar.
He says anytime you come across deer or any wildlife, it’s best to leave it alone.
“Never a good idea at all,” said Farrar. “It’s best to contact us and let us take care of it.”
Hurst says he learned a few lessons from this experience and hopes to never be in this dangerous position again.
“Not posing a threat to him,” said Hurst. “I might keep my hands down and I think that doing this caused him to charge me.”
Looking back and watching the video, Hurst says he’s thankful his injuries aren’t worse.
“I’ve had a lot of people call and check on me, ask me what happened because the video doesn’t tell what happened but he’s OK and I’m OK,” said Hurst.
The Department of Wildlife went out to Shawnee to find the deer, and tranquilize it so they can transport it to a safe area, away from people.
