Deer caught in Reading Oracle shopping centre

Staff said the deer appeared to be distressed

A deer has been captured after entering and running around a town centre shopping mall.

Shoppers were advised to keep their distance from the frightened muntjac after it was spotted inside The Oracle in Reading on Wednesday morning.

Staff said the animal appeared to be injured and "in distress".

They managed to capture it after herding it into a shop, and it is due to be released when the centre is not busy.

The RSPCA initially advised people to keep away from the deer, and checked it for injuries after it had been caught.

The deer was spotted in Reading's Oracle centre

General manager Andy Briggs said staff had named the deer Ozzie.

"We were able to get it into one of our stores and there make it safe and catch it," he said.

"We're an inclusive centre, but it wasn't quite the inclusivity we planned this morning."

The RSPCA said muntjac deer were an "invasive species" and there were strict rules about how to release them into the wild.

The animal charity said the release had to occur "with a certain distance of where they are found".

It said in a statement centre staff "will be releasing the little deer in the town late tonight, when there's no one around, so she can find her way home".