'Psycho' Squirrel On An Attack Rampage Leaves 18 People Injured

A gray squirrel that attacked nearly two dozen people in Flintshire, Wales has been euthanized.

The animal, described as being "vicious" by one victim, bit at least 22 people in the Welsh town of Buckley, British media outlet ITV reported.

At least 18 people were injured in two days by the squirrel, who has been dubbed a "psycho" and nicknamed "Stripe" after a character in the horror film series "Gremlins," according to WalesOnline.

Stripe attacked pensioners, children and pets, some of whom were left bitten, bruised and bleeding. A few reportedly needed tetanus jabs.

One of the victims was allegedly attacked as she tried to put out her recycling bags for collection.

Stripe was finally caught through a trap Monday by a 65-year-old resident, Corrine Reynolds.

Reynolds, who is known locally as the "bird lady," had fed Stripe since March, but she decided to act after she was bitten on the hand by the animal.

"The amount of people bitten by it... the bad wounds on some meant something had to be done," Reynolds was quoted as saying.

Reynolds also noted that some stories of Stripe's attacks were "awful" and that "people [were] really scared to go out."

"I know there are differing views on me capturing it but when you can't go out in your back garden for fear of being attacked, it’s not good," she said.

The decision was also motivated by the fact that Reynolds had an elderly lodger and a 2-year-old grandson who played in the garden, so she "couldn't risk injuries to either of them," she explained.

However, Reynolds pointed that Stripe "was always friendly" before the attacks and that the animal's behavior "had altered" and turned "erratic."

Following Stripe's capture, Reynolds asked veterinarians to put the animal to sleep after she failed to contact animal rescue charities. She had to launch a fundraiser to help pay for the £110 fee.

It is illegal to release a gray squirrel back into the wild in the United Kingdom, and trapped creatures must be humanely destroyed, as per ITV.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), supposedly the largest animal welfare charity in the U.K., later took Stripe, but the animal was then euthanized after the RSPCA's veterinarians examined him.

Reynolds suspected Stripe had an underlying condition.

"I said to the RSPCA guy that I was wondering if maybe he had an illness, perhaps a tumor or growth, because his behavior in the last week was worrying," she said.