Police use pepper spray on a baby squirrel

[NickCooley]

Human > Fluffy Vermin. What a waste of spray, buckshot would be quicker.

If it were anything other than a cute looking animal no one would give a shit

 

[Antari]

I hope he gets shot by someone for this

I think if he wants to do something like this, he should do it on his own time. Not while he's on duty and in uniform.

Is it any wonder the police force put this guy in a school? He should be attending classes there I think.

I'd like some more info on the situation before I make any judgments, but from what little there is looks really bad for the officer.

I hope he gets shot by someone for this

i just dont get why no on did anything

What a twat!
no low content post here!

Weird that the police responded, but there really is no better way for someone untrained in animal issues to deal with possibly rabid animals. What he needs is the proper equipment, something that animal control should have had. That said it used to be that suspected rabid animals were simply shot. Pepper spray just seems to be a waste of time in that respect.

I don't think he was responding to the animal being there. I think he was there, and the thing happened to walk up and he sprayed it. If they had thought the thing was rabid, they would have gotten the kids inside a long time ago.

We don't have the information to determine that unfortunately.

aaaaaah! its a squirrel! its going to destroy us! KILL IT! KILL IT WITH FIRE!!!!
cmon ppl, are you really that dumb? you afraid of flies too?
pathetic.....

edit: whats interesting to me is... what was this police guy doing there? somebody called police?
like in "help us, we are attacked by a squirrel"? and they responded?!

Hey guys, protip

READ THE LINK

He got called out to handle it because they thought it was rabid and it was approaching children.

Now, I don't know about you guys, but i'd rather not risk kids or myself getting rabies, as it can kill you.

And before anyone says "its a baby, it can't bite anyone". They can. They have teeth. They can bite through skin.

Seriously ... if you can't scare off a squirrel without pepper spray? Mother nature has every right to kill you.

 

[quantumsoul]

I hope he gets shot by someone for this

Really? really? It's a wild, feral animal, notice how as the squirrel gets closer, the crowd also back away from it. So he deserves to die for warding off a feral animal that is capable of attacking him (sure not life threatening, but it could give some very nasty scratches and bites, and if it has rabies or a disease, then heck, it could be life threatening!)

I was walking through James Park in London last year, and a squirrel jumped on a ladys leg and tried to scale her. They are dirty, evil little vermin, do not be fooled by the disney aesthetic.

EDIT: I just read the attached report, it turns out the officer was called to the scene because the squirrel was suspected of having rabies, so a rabid squirrel approaches you and a large group of children aggressively, I personally would berate you for not pepper spraying the little furry turd, rabies is still a killer disease, if he did not act the children and his lives were threatened. Death doesn't always ride a pale horse and carry a scythe. (And the squirrel was caught and cleaned up afterwards and was absolutely fine.)

So the officer actually did the right thing. He could have shot or tasered it thus killing it. So the squirrel was lucky the officer was as nice as he was.

 

[SteewpidZombie]

If anyone actually read the article, it was a report that the animal was acting unusual or erratic (Which is usually a sign of rabies). When a animal has rabies, you have to kill it (Rabies is in the brain and cannot be cured). So to deal with the problem, he either had to deter the animal (Spray some pepper spray and the animal SHOULD by all instincts retreat, but rabies would be affecting it's judgment), or he had to squish that animal under his boot.

Symptoms of rabies are often, Increased Agressiveness or Increased Friendliness. This means that either way they will try and get close to someone, which can possibly spread rabies if they bite or naw on someone. Rabies cannot be cured and it spreads throughout the whole body aside from the brain, the only cure (Once you have rabies) is to literally kill the animal/person. To CURE rabies BEFORE it has affected the brain and nervous system, it costs a large sum of money if you don't have medical coverage(Though in more developed countries like Canada or United States as an example, often you can receive medical treatment immediately and it is usually covered by most medical insurance).

Information on rabies: http://www.worldrabiesday.org/EN/media_center/videos.html

Edit: Also when dealing with ANY animal that MIGHT have rabies, they inform you to keep your distance and to kill the animal if it makes any attempts to bite someone before a animal control group can arrive. It should also be noted that not every town has animal control, so usually the Police, Park Rangers, or local hunters/farmers who know how to deal with animals are called instead.

 

[Denamic]

it still doesn't change the fact the thing is acting out of the ordinary.

Not really.
Squirrels are often fed by people because they're cute.
And squirrels that's been fed by humans will often lose their fear of humans.
One summer, we had a squirrel that was practically a pet because I fed it.
It'd even sit in my lap and chill.
Then again, Sweden is a practically rabies free country.

Also, rodents are knows as 'disise' carriers because they are in indirect contact with a lot of humans and thrive in human cities.
That is, rats and mice.
Squirrels don't get that close normally.
Plus, they don't spontaneously create diseases.
They have to have been in contact with a diseased human to begin with.

 

[Shock and Awe]

Oh no, a rabid squirrel got pepper sprayed, whoopty fucking doo.

 

[SteewpidZombie]

it still doesn't change the fact the thing is acting out of the ordinary.

Not really.
Squirrels are often fed by people because they're cute.
And squirrels that's been fed by humans will often lose their fear of humans.
One summer, we had a squirrel that was practically a pet because I fed it.
It'd even sit in my lap and chill.
Then again, Sweden is a practically rabies free country.

Also, rodents are knows as 'disise' carriers because they are in indirect contact with a lot of humans and thrive in human cities.
That is, rats and mice.
Squirrels don't get that close normally.
Plus, they don't spontaneously create diseases.
They have to have been in contact with a diseased human to begin with.

Actually Rabies is a Infection, not a disease. There are also around a hundred or more variations and separate strains of rabies all around the world. Squirrels and other rodent type animals (Especially skunks and foxes) contract rabies more than any other animal. It's because of rodents that rabies get spread to house pets and stray dogs because they bite the animals when the dogs or cats attempt to kill or eat the smaller animal.

 

[Dastardly]

http://digitallife.today.com/_news/2011/04/08/6435540-officer-caught-on-video-pepper-spraying-baby-squirrel?gt1=43001

Maybe that squirrel was rabid. I don't know. But it seemed kinda cute when it hopped after the officer.

1. When a squirrel is approaching humans like that, it's a huge sign of rabies.

2. This was at a middle school. Middle school kids don't know what's going on, and they're be more likely to fuck with the squirrel and get bitten than elementary or high school kids.

3. The officer did not have gloves, leashes, or any other safe method of handling the animal and removing it. Rather than use a gun, or go get a shovel or some other blunt instrument, the officer sprayed the rabid animal with his best non-lethal option.

4. If you read the story, the squirrel was later released and was absolutely fine. The pepper spray is what allowed them to handle the animal without risk of bites. Rabies will straight up kill your ass.

5. Of course middle school kids are going to whine and plead. That is what they do. In that age group, ALL authority is wrong ALL of the time. It's cool to resist or disagree with anyone that has a badge, a uniform, or a title.

In short, there is absolutely nothing "wrong" going on in this video. Unfortunately, the police department may decide to throw this guy under the bus to make it look like they "fixed" a problem that wasn't there. I hope they stick to their guns, though.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

Maybe the squirrel was carrying a weapon or something.

Actually yes, It was suspected of carrying one of the worst biological weapons known to man, a 100% kill rate if not treated immediately, and it was running towards a group of school kids.

Rabies is known to turn animals psycho, if it got to those schoolids and freaked out, it would have gnawed and scratched its way through the crowd, this incident if it had gone wrong may have resulted in a death toll in double figures. now I admit that thats a highly unlikely 'worst case' scenario, but are you willing to gamble your life and the lives of a dozen schoolkids on the defence, "It was only a little squirrel, I didn't want to hurt it!" The policeman did his job, he protected the group from a potential threat, and didn't use excessive force, because the squirrel was examined and was fine afterwards.

 

[Hashime]

I am a terrible person, I found that hilarious.
I would rather stomp the thing though. It didn't need to suffer.

 

[Plurralbles]

i don't get it...
also... The cracked article today talking about squirrels attacking people put this into perspective

 

[Dastardly]

Seriously ... if you can't scare off a squirrel without pepper spray? Mother nature has every right to kill you.

Interestingly, one of the defining features of rabies is that it will cause normally wild and stand-offish animals to approach humans without any fear. They'll behave as if tame. And you cannot "scare them away." You have to remove them.

(Which is what the officer did, after first spraying the animal to disable it. So that he wouldn't get bit or scratched.)

Had he not, one of those middle school kids would probably have thought, "Oh how neat. A tame squirrel. Let's mess with it." And then been bitten. And then rabies shots. And then lawsuit.

Cop is 100% right in this situation. There is no conceivable way in which he could have handled this better given the circumstances and equipment available to him.

 

[Dastardly]

Squirrels can't get rabies. Rodents have something in their DNA that prevents them from being infected by it. Those people are idiots.

False. They are very rarely found with rabies, but they are most certainly capable of carrying the infection. The CDC website itself says that it's possible, but really only likely if the squirrel is behaving strangely and rabies is widespread in the area.

So this stuff about "their DNA" preventing a viral infection? It's just false.

But furthermore, why would a cop be expected to know all the ins and outs of viral infection rates in rodents? Woodchucks are extremely capable of carrying rabies, and do they really seem all that biologically different from squirrels? (I'm not saying you could get the two confused, but that they both appear to be rodent-like mammals found in wooded areas)

 

[Throwitawaynow]

Person 1(Didn't read article): Squirrels can't get rabies, this is animal cruelty he should be fired.

Person 2: Squirrels can get rabies, here are several links that show documented cases of rabies. Here are some more of squirrel attacks. This was at a school and he was called to check in on it after it was acting eratic. The police man had no protection and used his only means of non-lethal avoidance: Pepper spray.

Person 1: It's still animal cruelty, I hope he dies!

 

[Vrach]

He got called out to handle it because they thought it was rabid and it was approaching children.

Now, I don't know about you guys, but i'd rather not risk kids or myself getting rabies, as it can kill you.

And before anyone says "its a baby, it can't bite anyone". They can. They have teeth. They can bite through skin.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't rabies perfectly treatable in it's incubation stage? Meaning, IF (and it's nowhere near 100% chance) the big bad officer does get bitten by the tiny baby squirrel, he can go to a doctor, get it cleaned, get a shot and walk away scott-free.

Also, isn't the correct institution to handle that kind of matter Animal Control? What the fuck is the cop doing there in the first place?

 

[Eri]

Person 1(Didn't read article): Squirrels can't get rabies, this is animal cruelty he should be fired.

Person 2: Squirrels can get rabies, here are several links that show documented cases of rabies. Here are some more of squirrel attacks. This was at a school and he was called to check in on it after it was acting eratic. The police man had no protection and used his only means of non-lethal avoidance: Pepper spray.

Person 1: It's still animal cruelty, I hope he dies!

I lol'd a bit. +1

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

I hope he gets shot by someone for this

It was probably rabid, people. It's not like he did it for FUN. Good christ, get all the information before you start sharpening your pitchforks.

 

[sagacious]

here's all i have to say....

Rabies is bad mmm'kay?

but seriously, you can look at a video with almost no context and presume to judge the people in it? I have no fucking idea what was happening, but I'm going to save my mood and assume that the animal was suspected of rabies, and the only stupid thing that happened was not getting the students inside.