Aggressive squirrel alert: two women sent to emergency room in California after being attacked by the “mean” animal

This is nuts! Residents of a San Francisco Bay Area neighborhood are on edge after a string of startling encounters with a squirrel that neighbors describe as unusually aggressive, and in at least two cases, dangerous enough to send people to the emergency room.

The squirrel “came out of nowhere”

Joan Heblack was walking through the Lucas Valley area of San Rafael when she felt a sudden grasp on her leg.
“It clamped onto my leg. The tail was flying up here. I was like, ‘Get it off me, get off me!’,” she told ABC7. The squirrel clawed and bit her legs badly enough that she needed hospital care.

Another resident, Isabel Campoy, said she and her niece Carmen were also targeted. “The squirrel went from the floor, tried to jump up to my face. I tried to protect my face, my arm was completely overcome by squirrel. Finally it jumped off. By then I was full of blood,” she recalled. Carmen rushed her to the ER after seeing the extent of the wounds.

Flyers warn neighbors of a “very mean squirrel”

Flyers have since appeared in the neighborhood, warning that more than five people may have been attacked by what locals describe as a gold-colored squirrel. The sightings and scares have also become a hot topic on neighborhood social app Nextdoor.

Wildlife experts say the behavior, while alarming, is not unprecedented. “If they associate people with food, they’re not afraid of them. They will look for food. If they don’t get it, there can be frustrations,” explained Vanessa Potter of WildCare in San Rafael. The nonprofit believes the animal may have been fed by humans when it was younger, leading to its bold and territorial behavior.

Risk of feeding wildlife

The good news for residents is that, while capable of causing pain, squirrels are not carriers of rabies. Still, experts stress that feeding wild animals is dangerous, creating situations that can put both people and wildlife at risk.

For now, neighbors say the squirrel hasn’t been spotted in several days. But those out walking in Lucas Valley are keeping an eye on the trees… just in case.

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