Parents charged after ferret chews off infant's fingers

by cexline | June 16, 2011 at 02:41 pm

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A Missouri couple was charged on Wednesday with endangering the welfare of their child when a ferret chewed off seven of their four-month-old’s fingers when he was left home alone.

Ryan Waldo, 33, and Carrie Waldo, 25, were charged in Jackson County with first-degree child endangerment. They have not yet entered a plea.

The incident occurred on January 10, and documents filed as part of the charges reveal that the parents told police that they were asleep in their Grain Valley home when the ferret attacked occurred. Records show that they called police around 2:30 am. Authorities only found the child’s thumb and part of a pinky finger intact.

In March, authorities obtained cell phone records and used GPS technology to determine that the Waldos were exchanging text messages at various location at the time of the attack when they said they were home.

The child was taken to Children’s Mercy Hospital in critical condition. Seven fingers were amputated by doctors, as they were chewed down to the knuckles. Court records further reveal that on the day of the incident that the parents moved several items around in the residence, including the swing that the child was sleeping in when the attack occurred. The swing had reportedly been cleaned and the ferret’s cage had been removed.

In May, the Missouri State Highway Patrol crime laboratory discovered that the ferret’s stomach contents screened positive for human blood.

The infant child and sibling have been removed from the parent’s custody while the case proceeds.