London: A child was taken to hospital in Brighton after reports that he had been injured by a fox, police confirmed on Monday.
The three-year-old boy was either bitten or scratched on the arm as he played outside at a party at Dorothy Stringer pre-school playgroup in Brighton, East Sussex, on Saturday afternoon.
It is believed the child, who has not been named, saw and stroked the tail of an animal which was sticking out from under a temporary building, when it turned on him.
An RSPCA inspector who was called was unable to find the animal, but was told there had been a fox den in the playground for more than year.
Hospitalised
Relatives took the boy to the Royal Sussex county hospital in Brighton where he was treated and released, Sussex police said.
An RSPCA spokeswoman said: "As far as we are aware it was a fox. People there told us they were aware of a fox who had made his den there and had been living there for a year or so.
"Attacks like this are extremely rare. Foxes will usually shy away from interaction with people. We offer our sincere condolences to the family concerned and we hope for a speedy recovery for the child".
The inspector had no information on the extent of the injuries.
The incident comes a fortnight after nine-month-old twin girls were attacked after a fox entered their upstairs bedroom in Hackney, east London.
