August 10, 2006
Cedar City, Utah — A young boy is receiving treatment
for rabies after being bitten by a fox in southwestern Utah, the
Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and the Southwest Public
Health Department reported Aug. 10.
The DWR and the SPHD received a report on Tuesday, Aug. 8, that a
young person had been bitten by a gray fox while on a weekend
campout with the child's family near Poverty Flats, a remote area
south of SR-9 in Kane County.
The carcass of the fox was delivered to St. George Animal Control,
which alerted DWR Conservation Officer Jonathan Moser. Moser
collected the fox's head and delivered it to the Utah Department
of Health in Salt Lake City to be tested for rabies. The UDOH
later confirmed that the fox tested positive for the rabies virus.
The family was notified by the Southwest Public Health Department,
which is coordinating appropriate medical treatment for exposure
to the disease.
"This incident does not indicate that the general public should
fear all wildlife, but it certainly does illustrate why it's a
good idea to admire wild animals from a distance and to not do
anything to lure them close or to try and capture them," says Doug
Messerly, DWR regional supervisor.
"Even animals that appear healthy will defend themselves when
they're in contact with people. A bite or a scratch can cause
infection or even transmit other diseases besides rabies."
The majority of rabies cases occur in wild animals, such as
raccoons, skunks, bats and foxes. Domestic dogs, cats and cattle
are also susceptible to the disease.
In the United States, exposure to rabies is rare in humans, but it
does occur from time to time. The numbers of human deaths in the
United States associated with rabies is currently one or two a
year, and death only occurs in people who fail to seek medical
help until after the disease symptoms have started.
"If people observe any unusual or aggressive behavior in animals,
they need to leave the animal alone and report the observation to
local police and the Division of Wildlife Resources," Messerly
says. "It can be a big mistake for people to try to help what
appears to be an animal in distress. Please leave them alone, and
let wild animals be wild."
|
