Overview
- The family say a fox slipped through an open back door on Thursday night, August 20, and bit three-month-old Josephine, leaving four puncture wounds while the mother was asleep and CCTV showed a fox in the garden moments before entry.
- The baby was taken to Watford General Hospital where clinicians found no skull fractures or brain injury and she received tetanus treatment and antibiotics; doctors described her condition as stable.
- The parents reported the incident to Watford Borough Council, were told the council could offer deterrent pellets costing about £300, and have taken private measures while remaining frightened to use their garden.
- Trevor Williams of The Fox Project said attacks are extremely rare, likely involve a young dispersing cub testing unfamiliar territory, and advised keeping doors closed and using safe, non-toxic repellents.
- Urban foxes are common in towns and late-summer dispersal makes curious cubs more likely to approach homes; local responses typically focus on deterrence rather than removal, which may raise wider concerns about household safety and council options.