(UPI) Patients and staff at a California hospital have complained about a group of aggressive wild turkeys roaming the area.

Director of corporate communications for John Muir Health Center in Concord, Calif. said the turkeys have been pacing in front of the building, blocking doors, getting aggressive with people in the parking lot and scratching vehicles.

He added the turkeys have been leaving droppings outside the medical center which presents potential health hazards.

"They have chased my kids, and they're not afraid of cars," resident Vanessa Davidson told NBC Bay Area. They're not super ferocious, but they can get intimidating because they're big.

John Muir officials have been working the county, the Department of Fish and Wildlife and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to find a solution to the problem, but some residents want the turkeys to stay.

Residents in the neighborhood have argued the turkeys are a long-standing and important part of the local community.

Charles Dimacali said the turkeys have lived in the community for longer than he has.

"They literally are like family," Dimacali said. There are people who care about them and want them to be part of the small community we have here.

The health center was granted a permit to trap the turkeys, but someone set the captured turkeys free before the USDA arrived to pick them up.

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