In a bid to control the ever-growing population of squirrels, officials at Santa Monica's Palisades Park are injecting them with birth control medicine. The squirrels will be injected with an immuno-contraceptive vaccine meant to stunt sexual development as a form of birth control.

The officials decided to opt for this method of birth control after other methods like euthanasia; poison or gassing failed to control their population. There are around 1,000 squirrels in the Park that can be aggressive and dangerous to the health of people they come in contact with.

SF Gate quotes Joe McGrath, the city's parks chief as saying, "We don't want to kill them if we don't have to. I personally like squirrels, but we also have to be receptive to the county's concerns."

Squirrels are possible carriers of rabies, or fleas, which could carry diseases like bubonic plague. The new vaccine that stops lactation and ovulation in females and testicular growth in males has no side effects. Berkeley is the only other city to try this method, which was developed by the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture. It comes at a cost of $2-$10.