Dog owner describes 'unnerving' encounter with aggressive deer in Winnipeg neighbourhood

A moment of fascination turned into discomfort and fear for a Winnipeg dog owner who encountered a deer Thursday.

"At first it seems like it's really kind of this magical moment, this really interesting animal that we're making a connection with," Marlowe Hiebert told CBC News.

"Then the next thing the deer gets aggressive. It's like, 'OK, this script is going off.'"

Hiebert and his eight-year-old Sheltie dog, Macy, were walking down Browning Boulevard in the city's Westwood neighbourhood on Thursday morning when a deer darted out from in front of a group of parked cars.

The deer came to a full stop almost two metres from them and locked eyes with Macy, before it started to stomp its hooves aggressively, Hiebert said.

Hiebert and Macy began walking up the sidewalk, trying to get away for their own safety, but the deer tagged along, following them down the front lawns.

"This little girl would probably be really hurt if a deer would attack," Hiebert said, referring to his dog.

Left to their own, with no one else around to distract the deer, Hiebert stopped and stomped his own feet, trying to give the deer an aggressive posture, but the animal didn't flinch.

"It wasn't until we came past pine trees and got some visual break between us that she did let us go," Hiebert said.

It's not unusual to see a deer coming through the neighbourhood, Hiebert said. During the winter he has seen up to four deer laying under a pine tree on his front lawn.

"They don't seem that big when you're standing near them," he said. "But you begin to look at the length of those legs and the speed with which they could likely move them.

"It was a little unnerving to have an animal like that be that aggressive."

A spokesperson for the province said they received several reports about the deer aggressively defending its fawn in the area, but there have been no reports of the animal making contact with residents.

The protective behaviour of the deer is expected to be short-lived, lasting a few weeks until the fawn can move on its own, the spokesperson said.

Relocation will only be used as a last resort, the province said, given it can cause stress to the deer and the fawn.

In the meantime, warning signs have been installed by the province, and the public is urged to be cautious and avoid the area or use an alternate route.

Deer sightings on the rise

Wildlife encounters like this are very rare, only happening once every year or two, the province said.

But Winnipeg is not isolated from having wildlife, especially when considering the city's design, said Barret Miller, manager of education and programming at Assiniboine Park Conservancy.

Developments around the city are being built to co-exist with forested areas in open grasslands that sit along river streams, he said, making Winnipeg an ideal habitat for whitetail deer.

"It's no longer just open yards and big houses, it's now a mix of shrubs, trees," he said. "It's not necessarily that the numbers are increasing. We're just seeing them more widespread across the city."

Any animal species, regardless of how docile it might seem to be, can be aggressive, Miller said.

Deer have tight and muscled legs designed to help them jump, but they can also be used to kick, Miller said. The same amount of force they use to jump three metres in the air can be used to kick.

That's the reason Miller said it's best to be at least five to 10 metres away from a deer while keeping a smaller posture and making as little noise as possible.

But if the deer starts "taking an unhealthy interest in you" and it is becoming a rather unsafe situation, he recommended to be large, loud and back away.

"Just talk to that animal in a very deep, bassy voice. Puff up your shoulders, pull the dog in on the leash and skirt around that animal," said Miller.

It is also important not to approach the fawn when the deer isn't around. People might think the animal has been abandoned, but the fawn was, in most cases, only left behind while its mother looked for something to feed it, Miller said. 

"Give them the space to be the mom they need to be, and they're going to give us the space we need to be human, and we'll get along," he said.