Chipmunks may look cute and harmless, but their sharp teeth can inflict painful bites. If you’ve ever wondered what happens if one of these little critters bites you, you’ve come to the right place.

If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: while chipmunk bites are not normally dangerous, they can cause redness, swelling, bruising, and even infection at the bite site. It’s important to clean the wound thoroughly and use antibiotic ointment.

Seek medical care if severe swelling, pus, fever or other signs of infection develop.

In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about chipmunk bites, including the health risks, what to do if you get bitten, how to avoid bites, and when you should seek medical treatment.

What Are the Health Risks of a Chipmunk Bite?

Pain and Skin Damage at the Bite Site

Getting bitten by a chipmunk can be quite painful, as their sharp teeth can puncture the skin and cause bleeding. The bite may leave marks, bruises, or small wounds on the skin’s surface. The injured area could be swollen, red, and tender to the touch for a few days after the bite.

While chipmunk bites rarely cause severe damage, it’s important to clean and disinfect the wound to prevent infection.

Infection

Chipmunks can transmit bacteria through their saliva when they bite, which may lead to infection. Some potential infections include:

  • Cellulitis – a bacterial skin infection that causes redness, swelling, and pain at the bite site.
  • Abscess – a pocket of pus that develops under the skin due to a bacterial infection.
  • Tetanus – a serious bacterial infection that affects the nervous system and causes muscle spasms.

Seeking prompt medical care is crucial if the bite area shows signs of infection like increasing pain, redness, swelling, warmth, or pus. Antibiotics may be prescribed to treat the infection.

Rabies

While rare, chipmunks may potentially carry rabies – a viral infection that affects the brain and spinal cord. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), rodents like chipmunks accounted for about 7% of all reported rabid animals in the United States in 2020.

Initial rabies symptoms can take 1-3 months to develop and may include fever, headache, weakness, and discomfort at the bite site. As the virus spreads to the brain, it leads to confusion, anxiety, hallucinations, and hydrophobia (fear of water).

Once clinical signs appear, rabies is almost always fatal.

The rabies virus is transmitted through infected saliva during a bite. If you are bitten by a chipmunk that could be rabid, immediately wash the wound with soap and water, and contact a healthcare provider about receiving post-exposure rabies shots to prevent the onset of this deadly disease.

What To Do if You Get Bitten by a Chipmunk

Clean the Wound

If a chipmunk sinks its sharp little teeth into you, the first thing you’ll want to do is clean and disinfect the bite wound. Use mild soap and warm water to gently wash away dirt, debris, saliva, or anything else that may have gotten into the wound (CDC). Pat dry with a clean towel.

Then apply an over-the-counter antiseptic, like povidone-iodine, hydrogen peroxide, or rubbing alcohol to kill any bacteria left behind.

Use Antibiotic Ointment

After cleaning, apply an antibiotic ointment like Bacitracin, Neosporin, or Polysporin. This will help prevent infection and keep the wound moist as it starts to heal. You’ll want to change the bandage and reapply ointment at least twice a day.

Take Over-The-Counter Pain Relievers

While chipmunk bites are not generally serious, they can certainly be quite painful! Ease discomfort and swelling by taking an over-the-counter pain medication like acetaminophen (Tylenol) or an NSAID like ibuprofen (Advil) or naproxen (Aleve) as needed (Mayo Clinic).

Just be sure to follow dosage instructions carefully.

Watch for Signs of Infection

Monitor the bite wound closely over the next several days. Signs of a worsening infection include increased pain, swelling, redness, warmth around the area, red streaks, drainage, or fever. If you notice any of these, it’s time to call your doctor right away.

When to See a Doctor

In most cases, chipmunk bites can be safely treated at home. However, it’s best to consult your physician if:

  • The bite wound is very deep or severe
  • Signs of infection develop
  • You did not get a tetanus shot in the past 5 years

Seeking prompt medical care reduces your risk of complications.

How to Avoid Getting Bitten by a Chipmunk

Don’t Try to Touch or Feed Them

They may seem like harmless little critters, but trying to touch or feed chipmunks can lead to some rather unpleasant surprises! The CDC reports that up to 20% of chipmunks may carry rabies and other harmful diseases.

Chipmunks that have grown accustomed to human feeding often become aggressive in seeking out handouts. While the cuteness level is high when stuffing their cheeks full of acorns, it plummets when they sink their teeth into human flesh (ouch!).

Feeding rodents can also lead to more rodent encounters. Trash food like chips, pretzels or bread are not healthy food choices for chipmunks. The extra food also allows more animals to survive and reproduce in one area, increasing the local population. This is a problem since chipmunks can…

Secure Trash Cans and Eliminate Food Sources

Like many wild animals, chipmunks become problematic when their natural food supplies dwindle and they start to associate humans with easy food access. According to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife leaving pet food or bird seed outdoors, or overflowing trash cans can attract chipmunks to areas near your home.

Removing these attractants and keeping yards clean is critical for deterrence. Use sealed trash cans and do not leave pet food outside. Since chipmunks feast on fruits, veggies and nuts, reduce the availability of garden produce that is easily accessible.

Use Humane Removal If Necessary

Sometimes chipmunk deterrence doesn’t work and the critters stick around, continuing to be a nuisance by digging burrows that damage landscaping. In these cases, live trapping may be required.

Always use humane traps that do not harm the animal. Once trapped, chipmunks should be relocated within 300 feet of the trapping site to prevent re-infestation, yet avoid relocation to a similar habitat nearby that may contain predators, limited food, or territorial animals that prevent integration.

Chipmunk Bite Symptoms Requiring Urgent Care

Severe Swelling

One of the most common and concerning chipmunk bite symptoms is severe swelling around the wound. This swelling can start pretty quickly, within just a few hours of the bite. It may continue to increase in size over the next 24-48 hours if left untreated.

Large, expanding swelling can be a sign that bacteria from the chipmunk’s mouth has gotten into the wound and caused an infection. Keep an eye out for swelling that seems excessive compared to the size of the bite itself. Swelling that spreads upward on a limb is particularly worrisome.

Pus or Drainage

If you notice any pus or drainage coming from the bite wound, it’s a clear sign of infection and needs medical care right away. Pus is composed of dead white blood cells and bacteria, the body’s attempt to fight off infection. Unfortunately, it means the bacteria is winning at that point.

Yellow, green or foul-smelling pus indicates serious infection. Don’t wait around if you see this – call your doctor or head to urgent care promptly.

Fever

Fever can sometimes develop as a reaction to any bite, but if you spike a fever above 100.4F (38C) after a chipmunk bite, it likely means infection. Fevers originate as the immune system releases compounds called pyrogens to boost your body temperature – this makes it harder for bacteria to survive and replicate.

So while a fever helps fight infection, it also signals your body is battling an aggressive infection. Contact your doctor right away if you develop any fever following an animal bite.

Other Signs of Infection

Along with the common symptoms above, some other concerning signs of infection include:

  • Increasing redness around the wound
  • Red streaks spreading from the wound
  • Intense throbbing pain
  • Oozing from the wound
  • Foul odor
  • Lymph node swelling near the bite

Not every chipmunk bite leads to infection – but you should get evaluated quickly if you notice any of these brewing signs. Left untreated, the infection can spread into your tissues or bloodstream and become life-threatening. So when in doubt, get it checked out!

Conclusion

While the vast majority of chipmunk bites are harmless, it’s important to clean and monitor all animal bites as they do carry a risk of infection. By avoiding contact, securing food sources, and seeking prompt medical care for any concerning symptoms, you can protect your health after an encounter with one of these common backyard creatures.

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