Ohio law enforcement rushed to 64-year-old Jodi Proger’s family home in Stewartsville on Saturday November 15, at around 10.30pm, after sheriffs receiving an urgent call about an animal attack.
When they arrived on scene, Sheriff James Zusack said family members informed them that Proger had been trapped inside an enclosure with a male deer she was attempting to rehabilitate.
The rescued deer had become aggressive and set upon her, causing desperate onlookers to attempt unsuccessfully to save her by fighting off the rampaging deer.
“Family members attempted to intervene and dispatch the animal prior to the arrival of law enforcement to reach the victim; however, the animal was ultimately dispatched by responding deputies to ensure scene safety,” Sheriff Zusack detailed.
Proger kept several deer on the property, and it’s not clear which stag was involved in her death.
Local coroners were called in and found no suspicion of foul play in the death of the mother, grandmother, and passionate deer lover, who is survived by her husband, daughter and three grandchildren.
Proger’s journey in animal rehabilitation began more than a decade ago, when she discovered an injured fawn in 2013 that had just been orphaned after his mother was killed by a car. She named the animal Wheezer and soon started to share her home with the wild animal.
“I wasn’t gonna do it but I did it,” she told The Dodo in a 2015 interview, where she also described her joy at seeing the young deer ‘running back and forth’ in its new home.
Wheezer soon became as much a part of the Proger family as the dog, and just as inquisitive. “He’ll climb up on the loveseat and he’ll watch a little TV and he’ll crash on the loveseat,” she said.
“Him and the dog will lie on the floor with each other. He loves the cats — he licks them to death.”
Her experience with Wheezer inspired Proger to begin caring for other injured animals at the property, while also helping like-minded people in her community.
The 64-year-old animal lover’s obituary reads: “Jodi provided her knowledge of caring for injured animals and offered assistance to others, which often included advocating and providing resources during their time of need.
“Jodi was appreciative and thankful for all of her ‘Wheezer Warriors.’ ”
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the Ohio Department of Agriculture are investigating the incident, and are looking into whether how the deer was housed and if it was legally kept, ABC 6 reports.
Just a few days after the tragedy at the Ohio home, Proger’s daughter Jennifer Bryan hit out at suggestion that it was Wheezer himself who had ended her mother’s life.
“Wheezer DID NOT kill my mother, he was neutered per the requirements of ODNR when she received her permit,” she said.
“My mom knew the dangers of owning deer, she’s been doing this for 12 years.
“This is a sad tragedy and we deserve RESPECT and time to grieve.”
Instead, it is understood that another deer that was being cared for was the culprit. Proger’s daughter detailed how her mother had become trapped in an enclosure while working alone at the family home.
Proger’s husband was injured in the ICU from a workplace accident when the animal attack happened. Sensing that something could be wrong after not being able to contact her mother, Bryan sent her husband over the check on Proger.
“My husband searched the property, unable to locate her [for] what seemed like hours but was probably 20 minutes, he discovered the deer was not locked in and he struggled to close him in,” she explained in a Facebook post. “The deer almost broke my husband’s hands during the struggle.”
With the deer completely out of control, the animal-loving family made a hard choice.
“I told Matt to get his gun, if there was a deer in his way to kill it if he had to get to my mother. I stand by this decision,” Bryan said.
However, by the time that help could reach the 64-year-old, she could not be saved.
“I then had to call and talk to my stepdad who was in ICU burn unit and tell him his wife was gone,” Bryan continued. “I’m sure you could imagine the heartache that was exchanged as I stood outside screaming and crying for my mother.”
