COLUMBUS, Ohio -- An 84-year-old Holocaust survivor known worldwide for his sculptures is recovering at a local hospital after fending off a 300-pound deer that ran wild inside his home, WCMH-TV in Columbus reported.

Alfred Tibor said that coming face-to-face with a 10-point buck and living to tell the story means he still has a great purpose to serve in his life -- to share a message of humanity, hope and love through his words and his work.

On Monday night, the buck charged through Tibor's living room window in his East Columbus, Ohio, home.

"I never, in my mind, was thinking that when my wife was yelling, 'Look it's a big deer in the living room!' ... I couldn't believe it," Tibor said. "I just didn't know what to do."

As Tibor distracted the deer, his wife ran outside and flagged down a passing taxi for help.

"When that buck was charging on me, and there were 10 antlers close in on my stomach, I don't know where I got the strength, but I guided him to the side with the antlers I was holding," Tibor said.

Tibor said the same inner strength that he found to make it through six years in a Siberian prison camp helped him survive the ordeal with the deer.

"The mind is the most important that gives you the strength, not physical power," Tibor said. "The mind has to be strong."

Columbus police found the deer in a bathroom in the home. Officers shot and killed it. Tibor said he felt sorry for the deer, but is otherwise OK.

Tibor, whose sculptures have brought him international acclaim, remains hospitalized in stable condition.