Girl bitten on finger by rodent at Connecticut zoo

Bridgeport, Conn. – A small child visiting a Connecticut zoo has been bitten on the finger by a rodent native to South America.

Lisa Clair, a spokeswoman for the Beardsley Zoo in Bridgeport, tells the Connecticut Post the “toddler-aged” girl was visiting Sunday when she was bitten by a red-rumped agouti, which is about the size of a large guinea pig.

The animal is kept in an enclosure of clear acrylic panels, and it appears the girl stuck her finger in a gap between two panels. The zoo took action to secure the enclosure.

Clair says the bite was not serious but the child’s mother took the girl to a hospital for an evaluation.

Clair says the red-rumped agouti, like all the zoo’s animals, is under veterinary care and is properly vaccinated.