An investigation is underway after Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials say a deer followed an elderly woman into her Woodland Park home and attacked her with its hooves.

The woman who is described as 77 years old suffered scratches, cuts and bruises to her back following the attack on Tuesday, CPW officials said.

Authorities say the woman was bringing groceries inside her home Tuesday afternoon, when a mature doe followed her through a propped door.

After she put away some of the groceries, she turned around and was met face-to-face with the large deer. When the woman attempted to leave the home the deer began eating food in her kitchen, official said.

The victim told authorities she threw several objects at the deer in an attempt to scare it away, but it would not leave, and when she turned around the deer started attacking her with its hooves.

Throughout the attack, the victim was able to stay on her feet and luckily was able to shove the deer out a back door. However, as she was removing the prop from the door, the deer ran back inside.

The victim resorted to grabbing a mop and used it to push the deer outside and successfully locked it out.

A CPW officer was dispatched to her home but the deer was already gone.

The victim told the officer that it would return because her neighbors feed the deer, which is a violation of state law.

The officer returned to the home on Wednesday morning and located the doe in the victim’s yard.

Following a positive ID of the deer, the officer humanely euthanized the animal, officials said.

“This is another dangerous example of what happens when people feed wildlife,” said Cody Wigner, CPW assistant area wildlife manager for the Pikes Peak region. “They become habituated to people, lose their fear and become aggressive and dangerous.

CPW officials say the number of animal attacks throughout Colorado, especially in Front Range communities, has increased in recent years as populations grow.

Since 2017, there has been three deer attacks in the Pikes Peak region, and if people continue to feed the animals there will be more, Wigner said.

“This is why it is illegal to feed deer and why we urge people to make them feed uncomfortable in neighborhoods, Wigner said. “The issue is far more serious than ruined landscaping or even the car wrecks deer cause on a daily basis on our roads.”

The deer’s body was sent to a CPW lab for necropsy and the incident is under investigation.

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