Worthing woman bitten by fox
Tammy Page reveals the damage to her finger after being bitten by a fox Picture by Stephen Goodger W02133H11
A WORTHING woman had the top of her finger bitten off by a “vicious” fox which got into her home through a cat flap.
When Tammy Page heard noises coming from the back door of her flat, in The Drive, West Worthing, she feared a burglar was breaking in.
But when the 29-year-old grabbed a torch and turned the lights on to find out what was happening, she was shocked to find the noises had been caused by a fox, which was now hiding behind her curtains.
Cornered
Cornered and with nowhere to go, the fox ran at Tammy and bit the top of her finger off and scratched her foot when Tammy tried to grab the animal by the neck.
Tammy said she was shocked by the appearance of the animal, which she described as “mangy-looking, vicious and horrible”.
“When I heard noises coming from the back door, I was petrified.
“I grabbed my torch and turned the lights on, but I did not expect to see a fox in my living room.
“My immediate reaction was anger and I felt like I needed to get it out of my flat.
“It then ran at me and I thought if I could grab it by the scruff of the neck I could get it out, but when I went to grab it, it bit me on the finger and made an awful screaming noise.”
Chickens
After removing the animal from her home, Tammy noticed her two cats “terrified” on top of the fridge-freezer, and her cat flap had been broken.
Tammy, who works as an ambulance technician, required a butterfly stitch for her injuries, but felt things could have been far worse if her two nephews, aged four and two, had been staying the night, as they often do.
She said she believed the fox, which looked “hungry and desperate”, had chased her cats into her home.
“I wouldn’t reccommend having a cat flap, because foxes can now fit through them. If my nephews were staying over, I hate to think whether the fox would have made it that far to where they were sleeping.”
Tammy said she had noticed foxes in the area becoming more brazen, and had seen them during daylight near her home.
She keeps chickens in her garden, but said there had been no problems in the past with foxes trying to eat them.
“This is a warning to young families to lock your cat flaps at night. These urban foxes are vicious and desperate,” she added.
First published as an exclusive story in the Thursday, January 13 edition of the Worthing Herald
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Weather for Worthing
Tuesday 29 May 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 11 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 12 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
Wind direction: South
