Photo: Getty Images
A policeman has been handed a special honour after he survived a ferocious attack — by a squirrel.
David Wheatley, a sheriff's deputy from Harrison County in Indiana, USA, has been given some tongue-in-cheek recognition by the force for his courage after footage showed him being set upon by the furry animal.
He had been responding to a call from an elderly lady, who had opened the door of her caravan to let her cat in when a squirrel ran inside and began crawling all over her.
The tiny beast ran up and around her leg before making its way up her body, leaving her with a scratch on her head.
After a quick struggle the deputies caught the squirrel and began removing it from the home, triggering another ambush.
The video shows a uniformed Wheatley flailing around wildly and letting out a yell as he attempts to kick off the squirrel while it runs around his body.