Warning on foxes after baby attacked

By RORY REYNOLDS
Published on 10/02/2013 00:55

A FOUR-week-old baby boy is recovering after being attacked by a fox, which seriously injured his left hand.

The animal tore the infant’s finger off after dragging him from his cot ­after entering his bedroom in Bromley, south-east ­London.

The child’s mother was alerted by his screaming and rushed into his room to see his hand lodged “halfway down the animal’s throat”, according to reports last night.

Surgeons at St Thomas’s Hospital were able to re­attach the baby’s finger and he was said to be recovering following the attack on Wednesday.

The incident is believed to be the most serious in London since 2010, when twin baby girls, Isabella and Lola Koupparis, were mauled by a fox at their family home in Hackney.

In the latest attack, the fox is understood to have crept into the house through an open back door.

The RSPCA said the only reason a fox would attack was due to fear.

A spokeswoman said: “It’s not typical fox behaviour at all. Foxes will come closer to a house if there are food sources. Then they can become quite bold, but they usually do back off and run away when there are people around.”

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, said last night that the authorities “must do more to tackle the growing problem of urban ­foxes.”

He added: “They may appear cuddly and romantic but foxes are also a pest and a menace, particularly in our cities.”