See, that's the thing; was she scared or angry? Hard to conceive of someone being scared of a fawn. (Fawn? No. Deer? Yes.) Maybe the deer have been eating all her plants (They do mine.) So she was angry at all deerkind. In which case, her actions are inexcusable, because she had other options to keep deer away.
But maybe she's one of those people who are freaked out by all animals, especially ones she happens to come upon unexpectedly in her suburban yard. Maybe when she comes upon an animal in her garden she beats first, asks questions later out of panic.
I don't think this story would tear at our heartstrings so much if she'd beaten a less adorable creature like a possum or an armadillo or a snake.
I feel for the fawn, I really do. But I kind of feel for this little old lady going it alone and trying to tend to everything herself, too, as she loses her abilities.