The only reference to shrews
Actually I have to correct myself, there
is one more reference.
Bulbapedia has noted that the claws for both Sandshrew and Sandslash are occasionally described as poisonous. While none of their Dex entries go into that, there is a precedent for it. Most importantly, at level 5, regular Sandshrew learns Poison Sting - which it'd otherwise have no real precedent for.
And it can pick up Toxic and Poison Jab via TM. Important to note especially in the case of Alolan Sandshrew, who eschews Poison Sting in favor of Powder Snow but can still be TM'd Toxic or Poison Jab.
Now pangolins are
not known to be venomous - they do have a chemical defense mechanism, but it's similar to skunks - but some species of shrew
are. They deliver the venom through bites rather than venomous claws, but it's there all the same.
There's a real short list of venomous mammals and shrews occupy most of the slots. Some solenodons and the European mole also fall on that list, but the shrew is arguably far more widely known for it, mostly due to the ubiquitous nature of the shrew.
Practically everywhere you can go on earth there's some native shrew waiting, and If you just take the northern short-tailed shrew, the Mediterranean water shrew, and the Eurasian water shrew, you're ****ed across
nearly the entirety of the northern hemisphere, which is frankly impressive as ****.
So that's almost certainly a shrew influence. Probably a blended trait considering how many pieces it takes from the pangolin book, but it's very much there.
