A Nutty Rampage: Squirrel Attacks Residents of a Queens Neighborhood

Squirrel on a tree — Photo by Ilnur Kalimullin

In what seemed like an appropriate ending for this crazy year, residents of a neighborhood in Queens, New York, witnessed, and some even fell victim to a terrifyingly violent rampage. However, this is not the typical human-made violence. But instead, one caused by tiny little squirrels.

After being left bruised and bloodied, New Yorker Micheline Frederick feebly told her story in an interview. She said, "We're wrestling in the snow, and there's blood everywhere and my fingers getting chewed, and it won't let go. Eventually, it just stopped, and there I was a big bloody mess."

Frederick was left with a bruise on her wrist where the squirrel landed before it viciously sank its teeth into her fingers. The little monster bit her at least eight times and got her pinky finger pretty chewed up.

She even jokingly told the reporter that it was an MMA cage match, one that she embarrassedly lost.

Shockingly, Frederick's experience was not an isolated case as two other neighbors also had similar experiences, albeit not as violent. The two claimed that a seemingly unprovoked squirrel jumped unto them and assaulted the duo.

The squirrels in the area have been said to be going after people for quite some time. During these assaults, aside from Frederick, at least three more people were brutalized by these tiny rodents. This prompted the city's Department of Health to advise the neighborhood to hire a licensed animal trapper.

Squirrel Attacks

Squirrel attacks are not common in New York and other squirrel infested areas. However, most of these attacks were the results of prior provocation. It is rare for these tiny rodents to jump on and go on the offensive without reason. The reason for the squirrel's aggressive behavior remains unclear. What is clear, however, is that people should not take incidents like these lightly.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, squirrels, unlike other small rodents like raccoons, rats, and mice, are not usually infected with rabies. However, despite the small percentage, squirrels can still carry rabies. Plus, they can always be couriers for other deadly diseases.

Rabies

Rabies is an infection caused by the rabies virus. These are spread when an infected animal's saliva comes in contact with an opening in the body. The most common infections come through broken skin, eyes, nose, or mouth. The virus, once it enters the human body, travels through the nerves up into the brain. When it reaches its destinations, it multiplies, causing inflammation to some regions of the brain and damaging it. It also causes an infection that affects the body, causing many hazardous, even deadly, results.

On-off chances of transmitting rabies from squirrels and other animals are known for carrying them, i.e., bats, cats, dogs, and rodents, the most common early signs and symptoms of infections are;