What you Should Know about a Squirrel Bite
A squirrel bite can happen at an unexpected time. You might just be trying to feed the little guy when all of a sudden he reaches out and nips your finger. You might be surprised that this little animal would do this, but it is more common than you might think.
Thinking about squirrel bites might remind you of that famous bit from the Woody Allen movie, Annie Hall. Annie’s former boyfriend says that he would like to die by being eaten by wild animals and Woody quips, “Right, torn apart by squirrels!” If you are the victim of a squirrel bite, however, you might not be in such a jocular mood. You might have worries about rabies and other possible diseases.
Squirrels and Rabies
The good news is that squirrels account for less than 1% of cases of rabies. Not only that, but rabies itself is becoming increasingly rare. Very few cases of rabies and rabies infections have occurred recently. In order to get rabies, an animal has to come into contact with another animal with rabies. Rabies transmits only during the fever stages when the animal starts to act erratically.
Most likely, your squirrel bit you while you were trying to feed it. Animals with rabies lose their appetite and begin to act erratically and aggressively. The fact that the squirrel was trying to get food from you is a good sign that it is no longer infectious.
Furthermore, if you were feeding a pet squirrel, then rabies is even less of worry since people don’t usually leave their pet squirrels outside. Those that do usually don’t hear from them again.
That said. If you do want to be absolutely safe, you should see a doctor. To cover all bases you may in fact have to go through the unpleasant treatments for rabies. It is not an enjoyable procedure, but if you have any doubts, it is better to be safe than dead.
How to Feed a Squirrel
The most likely reason why you were bitten is that you were trying to improperly feed a squirrel. Squirrels are very cute creatures and you might be tempted to hold out a nut for them to grab from you. You might even have managed to give one or two this way without incident. Alternatively, maybe you have been feeding the squirrel this way and then you decided to let your friend do it, only to have your squirrel bite him. This is because people fundamentally misunderstand squirrel psychology.
A squirrel may seem like a harmless creature. It is small. It has a cute bushy tail and, as far as you know, it’s not a meat eater. What do you have to fear from a squirrel?
The thing you have to remember, however, is that a squirrel is a wild animal. Even if someone you know has a squirrel as a pet, that squirrel, even when hand raised by humans, still has his squirrel instincts. For a squirrel in the wild, the world is a dangerous place filled with predators. It is a place where it must fight for food with other animals while avoiding being eaten by predators at the same time. A squirrel you must remember is a rodent—like rats.
Therefore, when you feed a squirrel you have to be careful because although you may think he is cute, he certainly does not think the same thing about you. Imagine if a bear were offering you a steak. You might not be too comfortable going up to him and taking it from him. Well that is what it is like for the squirrel. And so, if anything startles him, he might reach out and bite your finger trying to get you to drop the nut so he can scurry off with it.
Put simply, the best way to feed a squirrel is to put it down in front of him and let him make off with it. Holding it in your hand can be dangerous.