Portrait of a fox
(Mirror Daily, United States) At only ten days away from the incident in Clermont County with the bat spreading rabies (read the article here), a new animal is detected as a carrier of the disease. The fox from Lake Harriet (Minneapolis, Minnesota), dimmed to have bitten two people, has recently been diagnosed with rabies.
Last week, the fox attacks were reported to local officials, and the animal had had two victims. What the officials did next was to track the fox and, eventually, euthanized it. The animal was caught on Wednesday. The authorities found out it was a female fox, and it weighed ten pounds. The confirmation of the diagnosis came on Friday.
The victims of the fox’s attacks were a woman and a man. The first one was the woman, Susan Obmoin, who was riding her bicycle by the lake. She told the authorities she felt something grabbing her leg and, when she looked down, she saw the fox, and immediately called for help.
The other victim was attacked twelve hours later, at the same place. Michael Steilen was running by the lake and the moment he stopped, the fox attacked. He kicked it and ran away. This happened on Tuesday, and the day after, the animal was caught too.
The two victims of the rabies infected fox received anti-rabies vaccines and medical care, and now they are out of danger. The Minnesota Department of Health informs people they should get their vaccines too if they had been in contact with wild animals that might have had the disease. People are also advised to call the authorities if they suspect neighbors are taking care of such wild animals. Although they may seem nice, foxes are dangerous and don’t make a good pet.
As foxes are widespread in the region of Minneapolis, the cases of rabies with them are extremely rare, as authorities inform. The most common carriers of rabies are skunks, known to spread the disease among other animals, as well as to humans. The case in Clermont County, with the woman bitten by a bat which had rabies, while cleaning her house, also surprised authorities and the community.
On the other hand, there is no reason to get alarmed. Anti-rabies vaccines are very effective, and there are small chances that another case should appear soon. Meanwhile, the warning to stay away from wild animals is still valid.
Image courtesy of: Wikipedia