Pa. letter carrier attacked by squirrel is taken to hospital

Philly.com ^ | 11/1/2006

[dirtboy]

OIL CITY, Pa. - Letter carriers occasionally have to deal with angry dogs or maybe even a spider's nest in a mailbox, but a mean squirrel?

Barb Dougherty, a 30-year Postal Service employee, said she was attacked and bitten Monday by a squirrel while delivering mail in Oil City, about 75 miles north of Pittsburgh.

"It was a freak thing. It was traumatic," Dougherty told The Derrick in Oil City. "I saw it there on the porch, put the mail in the box and turned to walk away and it jumped on me."

The animal ran up her leg and onto her back, she said.

"I eventually got a hold of the tail and pulled it off me," Dougherty said. "No one was home at the house where I was delivering the mail, but the neighbor lady heard me screaming and came over."

An ambulance took Dougherty to the hospital, where she was treated for cuts and scratches. The squirrel was killed with a BB gun and sent to a lab to be tested for rabies. Dougherty was given the first series of rabies shots as a precaution.

Postal officials said the attack is extraordinary.

"In about 230 years of postal history, I bet it is not the first, but I've personally never heard of another squirrel biting," said Steve Kochersperger, spokesman for the Erie district.

Squirrels do not frequently bite people, said Regis Senko, who works for the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Steve Jolley, a Postal Service manager in Oil City, said, "We are not issuing a squirrel alert, but everyone is aware of the incident."

[avg_freeper]

Nut-hunting squirrel flattens amateur inventor

[dforest]

maybe the little critter thought she was a member of ACORN

[Panzerfaust]

One free bite? Not. Rabbits are far more dangerous.

Especially this rabbit....

[Panzerfaust]

One free bite? Not. Rabbits are far more dangerous.

Especially this rabbit....

[cjshapi]

Wonder how Bullwinkle feels about the tragedy?

[RightWhale]

They fight like housecats. They bite to hold and use hind feet to disembowel. Major difference--rabbits have series teeth and bite to the bone. Seen some sad sights out in the yard in the morning after a night of rabbit carnage. Squirrels are lucky rabbits don't climb trees and don't seem to realize they can take down an average tree in ten minutes.

Carter was right. That one time.

[sgtbono2002]

Close the lid and fire 'er up. Nothing like baked squirrel.

[maineman]

[Junior]

Wonder how Bullwinkle feels about the tragedy?

Well, from what he's been saying, if anything like this ever happened to Rocky he wouldn't have to worry. Bullwinkle's famous for pulling a rabbit out of his hat at the last minute.

[CougarGA7]

Ee got off easy. Next time ve vill be better prepared.

[Darnright]

[SquirrelKing]

LOL - Wonder why?

[Ciexyz]

Good luck to that poor carrier with her Worker's Comp claim. They'll be laughing their butts off at the Department of Labor when they get the paperwork.

[Max in Utah]

He was looking for nuts?

Barb Dougherty, a 30-year Postal Service employee, said she was attacked...

Doesn't look like it.

[verum ago]

I'm in New Orleans, but the squirrel attack was in Idaho

[Panzerfaust]

I've yet to see a rabbit who survived an encounter with this birthday gift from my Dad; slaying rabbits since 1980:

[HereInTheHeartland]

You know if you study hard, you get a nice leafy tree full of nuts.If not, they send you to a scrawny dusty yard where you resort to attacking postmen.

[hinckley buzzard]

.22 birdshot works pretty well.

[Tribune7]

ping

[Slings and Arrows]

The squirrel was angry because he couldn't get a recording contract.