Maryland family speaks out after ‘4-foot-long’ rabid beaver attacks 13-year-old boy

The family of a 13-year-old boy who was viciously attacked by a rabid beaver in Maryland has spoken out about the incident, describing the animal as a massive, four-foot-long adult.

The July 26 incident was the first of three rabid beaver attacks that prompted Cunningham Falls State Park in Frederick County to close, according to the family's GoFundMe.

The teen was identified as Dominick Cebula by WUSA 9 .

Dominick was swimming and looking at fish underwater in a designated area when the beaver suddenly struck his chest and latched onto him, the family said in their online fundraiser.

RABID BAT FOUND NEAR ZOO RESTAURANT SPARKS URGENT PUBLIC HEALTH WARNING: 'EXTREMELY SERIOUS' The family said the unprovoked attack unfolded in front of the boy's mother and younger brother, who watched in horror from the shore.

"This 4-foot-long beaver (not a cute little cuddly beaver — this thing was as big as his 8-year-old brother) came out of nowhere from the deep of the lake, beelined straight toward D, and began biting and attacking him," Dominick's aunt, Leigh Cebula, said.

"He did not provoke it, poke it, or mess with it in any way.

This was completely unprovoked." Dad Jeff Cebula told WUSA 9 the beaver began shaking its head and refused to let go.

"He grabbed its head and a leg, and he tried to get it off of him," Jeff said.

"At that point, he kind of felt that it was locked onto him.

And then it started shaking its head, kind of like a dog would do." Dominick eventually managed to pull the beaver off his chest and tried to back away with his hands raised, his dad said.

The beaver then lunged at him again and bit his right hand, prompting Dominick to fight it off a second time.

He was promptly airlifted to Johns Hopkins Hospital, where doctors began treating his wounds and administering rabies post-exposure treatment .

"It was so traumatic.