Fox terrorizes Capitol Hill, bites lawmaker and reporter

A fox terrorized Capitol Hill on Tuesday and bit at least two people, including a congressman.

U.S. Capitol Police received multiple reports on Tuesday of "aggressive fox encounters on or near the grounds of the U.S. Capitol," the agency stated on Twitter.

Law enforcement warned the public not to "approach any foxes" and said animal control was "working to trap and relocate any foxes they find."

A few hours later, Capitol Police announced that a fox was captured. It is unclear whether only one fox or multiple foxes were causing the mayhem.

Rep. Ami Bera, D-Calif., joked about his encounter with the fox on Twitter after he was bitten.

"What does the fox say? Last night, I found out…" he wrote, adding that he is now "healthy and back at work."

Punchbowl News reporter Heather Caygle said Bera was the victim of an "unprovoked attack" near the Russell Senate office building.

"I didn’t see it and all of a sudden I felt something lunge at the back of my leg," Bera said. "I jumped and got my umbrella."

While trying to use the umbrella to scare the fox away, Bera said "Capitol police came out and then fox ran away. It was the most bizarre day in Congress."

He initially did not seek medical attention, because the bite did not appear to pierce the skin, but he later decided to receive rabies shots "out of an abundance of caution," Caygle wrote.

Rabies has no effective treatment after an infection has been established. After exposure, a person must receive a series of four shots over the course of 14 days, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Politico reporter Ximena Bustillo posted on Twitter that the Fox also bit her.

"That feel when you get bit by a fox leaving Capitol cause that’s of course something I expect in THE MIDDLE OF DC," she tweeted on Tuesday.

"IT BIT FROM BEHIND ME WHILE I WAS WALKING. I didn’t even see it. I’m from Idaho. I know to not try and pet it!!" Bustillo added.

It is unclear how many other people the fox may have attacked.

The animal became the focus of jokes on Capitol Hill.

One Fox News reporter said that the creature "did not discriminate by party."

NBC News' Julie Tsirkin tweeted, "am I the only one who feels a little sad for the fox."

Trump-allied attorney Harmeet K. Dhillon said, "I would like to hear the fox’s side of the story," and included the hashtag "dueprocess4all."