WARREN, OH — Police in Warren, Ohio, arrested a man after responding to what started as an alleged burglary and turned into a fight over a squirrel, according to a police report. A woman told officers the man, who she knew, had been sending threatening text messages for several days before showing up at her home.

The dispute centered on an animal the two had apparently both claimed. The woman said the man did not live there, but he came into the house anyway, reached for the squirrel in its cage and then allegedly threw her to the ground when she tried to stop him.

Woman says man entered home and demanded belongings before reaching for squirrel

According to the report, the woman was downstairs in her home when she heard a disturbance at the door. When she turned around, she said the man was already inside and standing near her.

She told police she ordered him to leave. The report says he then began gathering items he claimed were his own, but his attention soon shifted to the squirrel sitting in its cage.

The woman said she stepped in front of the cage and told him he could not take the animal. At that point, she alleged, he shoved her to the ground. Police say she was injured during the struggle that followed.

Man tells police the door was open and says he acted in self-defense

Police said the man gave a different account when they questioned him. He said he went to the residence only to get his belongings and did not have to force entry because the door was already open.

He also accused the woman of attacking him first and told officers he was defending himself. The report says he was not hurt during the encounter.

Authorities did not describe any additional damage to the home, but the incident was serious enough for police to treat it as a burglary complaint tied to an assault allegation.

Arrest leads to jail transport while woman is told to seek protection order

The man was taken to Trumbull County Jail after the confrontation, according to the report. Police did not release his name in the information provided, and the woman was advised to pursue a protection order.

That step suggests officers saw enough conflict between the two to recommend formal legal protection, though the report does not detail whether such an order had already been filed before the incident.

The arrest ended the immediate encounter, but the accounts from both sides point to a dispute that had already been escalating through text messages and prior arguments.

Questions remain about the squirrel’s fate after the arrest

One of the few unresolved details in the case is what happened to the squirrel after police took the man into custody. The report says it is unclear where the animal ended up.

The woman told police she had planned to give the squirrel to the Humane Society, but she was keeping it until then. That detail helps explain why the animal became part of the confrontation, even though officers did not say whether it was legally owned by either person.

For now, the squirrel is at the center of a case that combines a domestic dispute, an alleged unlawful entry and a physical altercation over property.

Police account shows how a minor dispute became a criminal case

The Warren incident stands out because of how quickly the argument escalated from text messages and a disagreement over an animal into police action. What began as a conflict about who could keep the squirrel ended with claims of injury, self-defense and a jail transport.

While police have not said what charges will ultimately follow, the report makes clear that officers viewed the confrontation as more than a simple argument. The woman said she was hurt, the man denied breaking in, and the animal was taken during the struggle.

Those competing versions leave key facts unsettled, but the central sequence is clear: a known man entered the home, a fight broke out over the squirrel, and police arrested him after the confrontation.