There’s an old axiom in journalism that “dog bites man” is not a story, but “man bites dog” is worthy of coverage because it’s more unique and interesting.

“Dog bites man” may not be a worthy story, but apparently “fox bites girl” doesn’t fit the axiom. As the Rocky Mountain News reports today:

A 2-year-old girl is at home recovering from facial injuries after she was bitten by a fox, authorities said this morning.

Doug Kelley, director of Denver Animal Care and Control, said his agency responded to a call that a fox had bitten the girl near her father’s home in the 3700 block of West Third Avenue.

Kelley said the girl was released from the hospital, where she was treated for the bites to her face, about 2:30 this morning.

Personnel from his department responded to the scene within minutes after the girl was bitten but did not catch the animal.

“We have traps and are trying to track it down,” Kelley said.

Kelley said it’s common for foxes to roam in the city but it’s not typical that a fox will attack someone, unless they feel threatened. He said they are looking into what occurred.

This, my friends, is a sure sign of a slow summer news day. Even though the story seems, well, a little un-newsworthy, I did get a chuckle out of the headline: “Fox bites girl, 2, flees.”

Really? The fox didn’t turn itself in after the crime?