Ferret attacks baby girl in pram in Burnley

3:00pm Saturday 28th April 2012 in Burnley Photograph of the Author Exclusive By Vanessa Cornall, Crime reporter

A FEROCIOUS ferret attacked a 10-month-old baby girl as she was being pushed in her pram in Burnley.

The foot-long animal ran up and jumped into Lola-Mae Knowles' pram and bit her finger.

Her frantic mum Chloe Knowles, 21, shouted for help and two firefighters, who were driving past, managed to get it off her.

The youngster was taken to Burnley General Hospital to have the puncture wounds in her figure checked out.

Doctors X-rayed her hand to check the animal had not caused damage to the finger bone. They bandaged her hand and gave her anti-biotics to prevent infection.

Lola-Mae’s mum Chloe, of Barden Lane, Burnley, praised fire safety officers Faz Patel and Pete Harvey for their quick-thinking.

She said: "I can’t thank the fireman enough for stopping. Without them I am sure it could have killed her.

“This is not something you expect to happen every day. I was just walking to my mum’s house in Windermere Avenue when it popped out of the bush.

“I didn’t know what it was as I haven’t seen a ferret before, but then it jumped into Lola’s pram.

“I honestly didn’t know what to do, I didn’t want to make it more angry or cause even more damage by pulling it off. It had clamped itself on to Lola’s finger.

“She was just screaming in pain.

“I froze. All I could do was shout and plead for help from the people in the houses watching me, but no one came out to help.”

Firefighter Pete Harvey said: “One minute I was driving and the next Faz was telling me to pull over as something wasn’t right.

“We jumped out of the car and saw the light brown, minky coloured ferret clamped onto the baby’s finger.

“Faz managed to kick it off and then I tried to get it away from the pram by kicking it away.

“I think it must have been wild, it was ferocious.

"We spent about 25 minutes fighting to keep away. But it just kept coming back for more.

"It had hard sharp teeth and glaring eyes. It was doing everything it could to get passed me and Faz and back to the baby.

“All I can say is that it must have been hungry as it didn’t want to give up without a fight.”

Eventually, the animal ran off towards Barden Lane following the attack at 2.30pm on Wednesday.

Teaching assistant Chloe, a former pupil at Bowland High School, in Clitheroe, believes it could be an escaped pet.

She said: “I hope it was someone’s pet and not a wild animal. That would be a really scary thought.

"I already feel nervous about going out alone with Lola-Mae.

"I can’t remember for sure if it was wearing a collar but I am pretty certain it was. There are also rumours that someone living in Windermere Avenue builds ferret cages, maybe it belongs to them?

“I just hope it gets caught because it was truly terrifying.”

Steve Carpenter, deputy manager at the Altham RSPCA Centre said: “It sounds to me as this little girl has had a very lucky escape. Everyone knows ferrets have razor sharp teeth and that they like to cling on.

“Ferrets are domesticated animals and not wild animals so this one has been either left behind or it has escaped from its owner.

“I would urge anyone who spots a ferret to contact their local RSPCA inspector so it can be collected.”

Comments (23)

4:33pm Sat 28 Apr 12

GIBUCK says...

Theres lots of ferrets in Burnley.....they all need exterminating along with the animal type aswell
Theres lots of ferrets in Burnley.....they all need exterminating along with the animal type aswell GIBUCK

4:44pm Sat 28 Apr 12

Lifeinthemix says...

stinky keep yer ferrets under control....
stinky keep yer ferrets under control.... Lifeinthemix

4:58pm Sat 28 Apr 12

I_Love_Mommy says...

Poor child be scarred for life
Poor child be scarred for life I_Love_Mommy

4:59pm Sat 28 Apr 12

Keep Darwen Green says...

Ferret sniffer, where were your ferrets on the day in question. Is this the start of the end, first we had the psyco horse now the suicide ferret.
Ferret sniffer, where were your ferrets on the day in question. Is this the start of the end, first we had the psyco horse now the suicide ferret. Keep Darwen Green

5:27pm Sat 28 Apr 12

I_Love_Mommy says...

Baby Delores, deserves compo !!!
Baby Delores, deserves compo !!! I_Love_Mommy

5:29pm Sat 28 Apr 12

I_Love_Mommy says...

"It had hard sharp teeth and glaring eyes... Pennywise !!
"It had hard sharp teeth and glaring eyes... Pennywise !! I_Love_Mommy

7:18pm Sat 28 Apr 12

Keep Darwen Green says...

Thats one tough and determined ferret if it can go 25 minutes with two firefighters
Thats one tough and determined ferret if it can go 25 minutes with two firefighters Keep Darwen Green

8:25pm Sat 28 Apr 12

sonny says...

Sorry but how does a bitten finger class as a ferocius attack?,
Bizare yes and could have been worst i imagine, but ferocious come on, it wasnt a dog or even a ferrel dingle.
Sorry but how does a bitten finger class as a ferocius attack?, Bizare yes and could have been worst i imagine, but ferocious come on, it wasnt a dog or even a ferrel dingle. sonny

12:04pm Sun 29 Apr 12

grannyweasel says...

Sorry but the whole thing sounds totally weird to me. No way a ferret "with glaring eyes" would jump into a pram and latch onto a kid's finger.

Minky coloured? Could it be a wild mink that went crazy? The American mink is known to be ferocious ... a ferret is not like that :{

And why wasn't the kid tested for rabies after being bitten on that finger?
Sorry but the whole thing sounds totally weird to me. No way a ferret "with glaring eyes" would jump into a pram and latch onto a kid's finger. Minky coloured? Could it be a wild mink that went crazy? The American mink is known to be ferocious ... a ferret is not like that :{ And why wasn't the kid tested for rabies after being bitten on that finger? grannyweasel

12:48pm Sun 29 Apr 12

clowiee says...

So just thought i'd set the story straight, 1st of all how do u no she wasnt tested for rabies? 2nd if i wanted to claim compo i would have done it by now and 3rdly... dont u think maybe the paper has over reacted with the title. Im sure if it had happened to u, u wouldn't be so heartless about it. also just want to make it clear i didnt contact the paper they contacted me.
So just thought i'd set the story straight, 1st of all how do u no she wasnt tested for rabies? 2nd if i wanted to claim compo i would have done it by now and 3rdly... dont u think maybe the paper has over reacted with the title. Im sure if it had happened to u, u wouldn't be so heartless about it. also just want to make it clear i didnt contact the paper they contacted me. clowiee

1:13pm Sun 29 Apr 12

BURNLEYITE39 says...

clowiee wrote:
So just thought i'd set the story straight, 1st of all how do u no she wasnt tested for rabies? 2nd if i wanted to claim compo i would have done it by now and 3rdly... dont u think maybe the paper has over reacted with the title. Im sure if it had happened to u, u wouldn't be so heartless about it. also just want to make it clear i didnt contact the paper they contacted me.
WELL TOLD,THATLL SHUTTEM UP, nn theyr CAN b nasty can ferrets wateva anyone says i used to go rabbitting with ferretts n KNOW how sharp n HOW THEY LOCK ON TO ur hand when they bite,so i gather ppl never had a ferrett that av commented, theyre HUNTING ANIMALS so obvs theyr hunters u FOOLS
[quote][p][bold]clowiee[/bold] wrote: So just thought i'd set the story straight, 1st of all how do u no she wasnt tested for rabies? 2nd if i wanted to claim compo i would have done it by now and 3rdly... dont u think maybe the paper has over reacted with the title. Im sure if it had happened to u, u wouldn't be so heartless about it. also just want to make it clear i didnt contact the paper they contacted me.[/p][/quote]WELL TOLD,THATLL SHUTTEM UP, nn theyr CAN b nasty can ferrets wateva anyone says i used to go rabbitting with ferretts n KNOW how sharp n HOW THEY LOCK ON TO ur hand when they bite,so i gather ppl never had a ferrett that av commented, theyre HUNTING ANIMALS so obvs theyr hunters u FOOLS BURNLEYITE39

1:17pm Sun 29 Apr 12

clowiee says...

thank you... just no need for nasty comments :(
thank you... just no need for nasty comments :( clowiee

1:49pm Sun 29 Apr 12

anjisan says...

hi i know this young lady she is a wonderul mum and well educated, thank you for any nice comment's ans as for the nasty ones the troll's have put on get a life saddo's
hi i know this young lady she is a wonderul mum and well educated, thank you for any nice comment's ans as for the nasty ones the troll's have put on get a life saddo's anjisan

2:22pm Sun 29 Apr 12

Lifeinthemix says...

so if you see a ferret get the bomb squad out with full anti-terror uniforms and rapier missiles
so if you see a ferret get the bomb squad out with full anti-terror uniforms and rapier missiles Lifeinthemix

3:25pm Sun 29 Apr 12

Your ferret stinks says...

I heard this story on radio lancs when it first happened and was extremely suprised when people were stating that it was a ferret, which i pretty much doubt as most people cannot tell the difference beteween ferrets weasels, stoats, polecats, martens, mink, all of which are of the same family (Mustelidae) along with otters and badgers though people would know the last two you would hope.
I would suspect a wild mink which are quite prevelent in this area ever since animal rights activists set a whole bunch of them free which were being bred for their fur on a farm not to far away. Two wrongs dont make a right!
What i do find hard to digest is that when interviewed on the radio Faz said he kicked the ferret off the childs hand! This action could have maimed the child for life ripping off her fingers, just get hold of it by the scruff of the neck and squeeze the sides of its mouth and it would have eventually let go just leaving small punture wounds, but hey it's easy for me to say right?
Just think if Faz had have kept hold of it the child could now have a little pair of mittens to remember the whole thing by.
I heard this story on radio lancs when it first happened and was extremely suprised when people were stating that it was a ferret, which i pretty much doubt as most people cannot tell the difference beteween ferrets weasels, stoats, polecats, martens, mink, all of which are of the same family (Mustelidae) along with otters and badgers though people would know the last two you would hope. I would suspect a wild mink which are quite prevelent in this area ever since animal rights activists set a whole bunch of them free which were being bred for their fur on a farm not to far away. Two wrongs dont make a right! What i do find hard to digest is that when interviewed on the radio Faz said he kicked the ferret off the childs hand! This action could have maimed the child for life ripping off her fingers, just get hold of it by the scruff of the neck and squeeze the sides of its mouth and it would have eventually let go just leaving small punture wounds, but hey it's easy for me to say right? Just think if Faz had have kept hold of it the child could now have a little pair of mittens to remember the whole thing by. Your ferret stinks

5:37pm Sun 29 Apr 12

AMK1970 says...

Ferrets have been domesticated for over 2000 years now so it wont have been a wild ferret. It will more than likely have been a stoat or a mink, plus it would be very unusual for a pet ferret to be so aggressive and it certainly wouldn't jump in a pram. I have had 18 ferrets over the last 6 years and havn't had an aggressive one yet! This was not a ferret. Am glad the baby is ok.
Ferrets have been domesticated for over 2000 years now so it wont have been a wild ferret. It will more than likely have been a stoat or a mink, plus it would be very unusual for a pet ferret to be so aggressive and it certainly wouldn't jump in a pram. I have had 18 ferrets over the last 6 years and havn't had an aggressive one yet! This was not a ferret. Am glad the baby is ok. AMK1970

5:41pm Sun 29 Apr 12

AMK1970 says...

Ferrets have been domesticated for over 2000 years now so it wont have been a wild ferret. It will more than likely have been a stoat or a mink, plus it would be very unusual for a pet ferret to be so aggressive and it certainly wouldn't jump in a pram. I have had 18 ferrets over the last 6 years and havn't had an aggressive one yet! This was not a ferret. Am glad the baby is ok.
Ferrets have been domesticated for over 2000 years now so it wont have been a wild ferret. It will more than likely have been a stoat or a mink, plus it would be very unusual for a pet ferret to be so aggressive and it certainly wouldn't jump in a pram. I have had 18 ferrets over the last 6 years and havn't had an aggressive one yet! This was not a ferret. Am glad the baby is ok. AMK1970

8:04pm Sun 29 Apr 12

sonny says...

Are you sure it wasnt rovers manager steve kean mistaken as stoat, he did turn up to todays game with a black eye and i wouldnt put it past him to attack a baby(hes spent the last 2 years torturing the venkys baby!).
Are you sure it wasnt rovers manager steve kean mistaken as stoat, he did turn up to todays game with a black eye and i wouldnt put it past him to attack a baby(hes spent the last 2 years torturing the venkys baby!). sonny

8:15pm Sun 29 Apr 12

littlevix89 says...

My god this is the biggest load of bull I have ever seen and is just another thing to make people against much loved pets just like news papers have done to dog breeds I'v had ferrets 8 years and never have I had one be like that and scared for your child's life come on worst case fingers maybe but life talk about over the top. My ferrets are like my kids if I can't talk them to the park on leads of course without fearful abuse because of this article well it's a sad pathetic world we live in and god help us if the fire department can't control one ferret
My god this is the biggest load of bull I have ever seen and is just another thing to make people against much loved pets just like news papers have done to dog breeds I'v had ferrets 8 years and never have I had one be like that and scared for your child's life come on worst case fingers maybe but life talk about over the top. My ferrets are like my kids if I can't talk them to the park on leads of course without fearful abuse because of this article well it's a sad pathetic world we live in and god help us if the fire department can't control one ferret littlevix89

10:00pm Sun 29 Apr 12

AMK1970 says...

well said little vix. Its the pure ignorance of people like this who know absolutely nothing about ferrets that gives them the reputation they have! Anyone who owns one or has ever owned one will know how loving and affectionate they are!
well said little vix. Its the pure ignorance of people like this who know absolutely nothing about ferrets that gives them the reputation they have! Anyone who owns one or has ever owned one will know how loving and affectionate they are! AMK1970

10:56pm Sun 29 Apr 12

goz says...

I've had lot's of ferrets over the years and if hand reared and socialised early they are fine. I have taken on plenty of ''biters'' and been bit numerous times. But these have always been neglected and badly handled in the first place. I agree with your ferret stinks wild mink I would guess and even an experienced handler would be wary of handling a wild mink.
I've had lot's of ferrets over the years and if hand reared and socialised early they are fine. I have taken on plenty of ''biters'' and been bit numerous times. But these have always been neglected and badly handled in the first place. I agree with your ferret stinks wild mink I would guess and even an experienced handler would be wary of handling a wild mink. goz

10:59am Mon 30 Apr 12

KatieElcock says...

OMG all you people on here Shut up ! A Little baby was hurt so if youve got nothing nice to say dont !!
OMG all you people on here Shut up ! A Little baby was hurt so if youve got nothing nice to say dont !! KatieElcock

12:42pm Mon 30 Apr 12

Your ferret stinks says...

goz wrote:
I've had lot's of ferrets over the years and if hand reared and socialised early they are fine. I have taken on plenty of ''biters'' and been bit numerous times. But these have always been neglected and badly handled in the first place. I agree with your ferret stinks wild mink I would guess and even an experienced handler would be wary of handling a wild mink.
Quite agree with your last statement about handling wild mink and it would only be under exceptional circumstances like this that i would ever handle one, however since it was latched on with it's mouth already full you have half a chance of not being bitten whilst you get control of it,
that said i like to think i would take a bite to save a childs hand from being badly mauled.
[quote][p][bold]goz[/bold] wrote: I've had lot's of ferrets over the years and if hand reared and socialised early they are fine. I have taken on plenty of ''biters'' and been bit numerous times. But these have always been neglected and badly handled in the first place. I agree with your ferret stinks wild mink I would guess and even an experienced handler would be wary of handling a wild mink.[/p][/quote]Quite agree with your last statement about handling wild mink and it would only be under exceptional circumstances like this that i would ever handle one, however since it was latched on with it's mouth already full you have half a chance of not being bitten whilst you get control of it, that said i like to think i would take a bite to save a childs hand from being badly mauled. Your ferret stinks

Comments are closed on this article.

click2find

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree