Images of a tumor-ridden deer have gone viral on social media this week after the afflicted animal was spotted by a photographer in Minnesota.

Taking to Facebook this week, Julie Carrow shared pictures of the unfortunate animal after she saw it in the wilderness surrounding Pipestone, and was shocked by its condition. The pictures were captioned: "This to me is just heartbreaking ... Hoping this post will help this little man."

The creature was covered in a number of black, swollen growths on its neck, head, and body. Carrow contacted the  Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to express her concern about the stricken deer.

Commenting on the sighting in an interview with Bring Me The News, Carrow stated: "I was out shooting a senior session in the northern section of Pipestone and this deer casually wandered past us. He was grazing as he went by and did not appear in any distress nor did he appear malnourished. I couldn't see his eyes though."

It turns out that the growths are benign: an example of a skin condition common to the species known as 'fibroma'; caused by a papillomavirus.

In a statement made to BMTN, a spokesperson for the department claimed: "These are called cutaneous fibromas, caused by papillomavirus.  Not new to MN for sure, as we get photos just about every year showing deer with fibromas.  They are like warts.  In time, they regress and fall off; however, in very extreme cases there can be complications."

They added: "This deer has masses near/in the eyes; likely to be impacting its ability to see and the location of the masses are also near joints that can slow down its movement.  This is one of the worst cases of fibromas I have ever seen in a [Minnesotan] deer. Could be an easy target for a coyote. We will not interfere with nature in this case."

Sadly, this isn't the first time we've written about one of these animals suffering an unfortunate fate. Check out this article we wrote all about the dead deer who was found with more than four kilograms of plastic in its stomach.

Images of a tumor-ridden deer have gone viral on social media this week after the afflicted animal was spotted by a photographer in Minnesota.

Taking to Facebook this week, Julie Carrow shared pictures of the unfortunate animal after she saw it in the wilderness surrounding Pipestone, and was shocked by its condition. The pictures were captioned: "This to me is just heartbreaking ... Hoping this post will help this little man."

The creature was covered in a number of black, swollen growths on its neck, head, and body. Carrow contacted the  Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to express her concern about the stricken deer.

Commenting on the sighting in an interview with Bring Me The News, Carrow stated: "I was out shooting a senior session in the northern section of Pipestone and this deer casually wandered past us. He was grazing as he went by and did not appear in any distress nor did he appear malnourished. I couldn't see his eyes though."

It turns out that the growths are benign: an example of a skin condition common to the species known as 'fibroma'; caused by a papillomavirus.

In a statement made to BMTN, a spokesperson for the department claimed: "These are called cutaneous fibromas, caused by papillomavirus.  Not new to MN for sure, as we get photos just about every year showing deer with fibromas.  They are like warts.  In time, they regress and fall off; however, in very extreme cases there can be complications."

They added: "This deer has masses near/in the eyes; likely to be impacting its ability to see and the location of the masses are also near joints that can slow down its movement.  This is one of the worst cases of fibromas I have ever seen in a [Minnesotan] deer. Could be an easy target for a coyote. We will not interfere with nature in this case."

Sadly, this isn't the first time we've written about one of these animals suffering an unfortunate fate. Check out this article we wrote all about the dead deer who was found with more than four kilograms of plastic in its stomach.