Md. teen fatally shoots deer after it busts through front door of home

A Maryland teenager thought an intruder was breaking into his house when he heard the front door kicked in. Instead, he found himself face-to-face with a deer standing in his living room.

Out of all the homes on his Frederick street, it is believed this deer specifically picked Ryan Manchester’s house to barge into for one reason – breeding season.

“We had just cut down our Christmas tree the day before so we are pretty sure that a doe had sprayed our Christmas tree and that it smelled that scent,” said Manchester.

On Dec. 5, the 17-year-old was home alone in the afternoon when he heard a loud commotion.

“It sounded like a person was taking a sledgehammer to my door, so I was actually pretty terrified,” he said. “You can see the holes in the door from where the antlers hit.”

When he came around the corner, he saw the deer going after the family tree and he captured the wild animal on his cell phone.

“It was just totally behind the tree,” Manchester said. “It actually knocks the tree over.”

He said for several minutes, the 8-point buck that weighed over 100 pounds flailed around his living room tearing it apart.

“He was trying to jump through all the windows so he was actually bleeding everywhere because he had cut himself up,” the teenager recalled. “I knew it was trying to mate so I was afraid it was going to become territorial and try and hurt me.”

That is when he decided to call 911 and then his father at work.

John Manchester said his son told him, "There is a deer in our living room and I need to know where the keys to the guns are. So that is a lot to take in.”

Ryan said animal control officers were not able to come right away and the damage was getting worse. He grabbed his father's 9 mm handgun and fired off two shots hitting the deer in the head and chest. It died on the living room floor. Animal control officers arrived a short time later.

“The only concern I had was we don't hunt, so I wasn't sure he knew where on the deer to shoot it to make it come down quickly because we didn't want it to be in pain,” said Ryan’s father. “But he did a great job.”

It is estimated the deer caused about $4,500 in damage at the home.

Animal control officials said while every situation is different and the 17-year-old did not do anything wrong, they recommend not engaging with the animal, to get outside and to contact your local authorities to handle it.