Yoshi is young dog in Penticton training to be a service dog.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Jackie Hooper

Jackie Hooper was walking her young dog through the middle of town when she got attacked by a mother deer and ended up with bruises and a mild concussion.

The incident happened Saturday morning, June 15, on Duncan Avenue by the Leir House.

“It all happened so fast, all I could think of doing is protecting my dog, she’s still young,” Hooper said.

Hooper was walking to the Safeway with her dog and went past an empty lot where she saw a baby deer under a tree. She immediately began backing up.

“The mother deer came from behind a tree and I turned my back to it, putting my dog in front of me to protect her, she’s only 17 months old. She’s my service animal, in training to be a diabetic service dog.

“The deer jumped on my back and was kicking me and somehow I ended up on the street. I heard screeching wheels, people honking and yelling, and then I was on the ground on the sidewalk. It all happened so fast.”

Hooper said three men chased the deer off and a kind stranger sat on the ground with her, talking to her and holding her hand until an ambulance arrived. She was transported to the local hospital with bruises and a concussion.

She's lived in Penticton for two decades and has never been attacked by a deer before, however, after posting about the incident on social media several people came forward with similar stories.

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While she doesn’t want deer to be killed, she does hope some kind of management plan will be put in place.

“The deer are here because we built on their lands, it isn’t their fault, but it isn’t my fault either,” she said. “Some people feed the deer, or let their dogs chase after them or try to hit them with cars.

“There are so many mother deer here with babies but only a few attack. I suspect those ones have been attacked by dogs before.”

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Hooper is recovering from the attack, and her dog is OK, but she said the experience was scary.

“I’m so grateful to the people who helped me,” she said.

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Earlier this month, an aggressive deer attacked a woman in West Kelowna and killed one of her dogs.

In a media release issued June 11, the Ministry of Environment said people should take precautions around all wildlife by leashing your dogs, travelling in groups and keeping your distance.

For more tips, go to WildSafeBC.

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