Raccoons bite baby sleeping in crib

ATLANTA, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- An infant girl is in critical condition in an Atlanta hospital after being bitten in her crib by two raccoons that got into the family home, authorities said.

Deputies responded to a 911 call around 4 a.m. Wednesday from the mother saying her daughter had been bitten by a pair of raccoons, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

Bitten severely on her head and other parts of her body, the 9-month-old was taken to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston, police Lt. Tyrone Oliver said.

The infant has been tested for rabies, WSB Radio reported.

The raccoons were outside the home when deputies arrived, Oliver said, and one became aggressive, was shot twice by a deputy and ran away.

The other was captured and tested negative for rabies.

Such attacks are rare, Oliver said.

"It's very disturbing," he said. "It my 12 years here, I never came across a case of a 9-month-old, sleeping in her crib, in the room with her mother, and then being attacked. It's very sad."

Oliver said deputies are investigating the possibility the family was keeping them in the home as pets.

"We're looking into that and determining whether that's true," he said.

If that is the case, charges could be filed, he said.