by Thaddeus Flint
A fox which attacked three people in New Lebanon has tested positive for rabies.
The attack occurred on Saturday, January 12, near the junction of West Street and Route 20. At around 6:30 pm Parks Maintenance Supervisor Scott Larabee returned to his home and was set upon by the animal.
[private]“I got out of my vehicle, and the thing just attacked my feet,” said Larabee. “It didn’t actually bite me but it latched on to my shoes.” Larabee kicked the creature off, but in a few seconds “it was right back on me.” It chased him around his truck until Larabee managed to get up on his porch. The fox then ran off down the road and later, around 8:30 pm, attacked two of Larabee’s neighbors, this time actually going up onto their porch.
According to Town Clerk, Colleen Teal, after taking “chunks out of boots,” the fox was “destroyed” by a resident. “It was pretty aggressive,” said Teal, who added that residents need not fear legal repercussions from defending themselves or property from attacking animals. The Columbia County Health Department immediately tested the dead fox, later identified as a Grey Fox, for rabies. Within 24 hours the results were back. “It was definitely rabid,” said Teal
The Health Department has advised Columbia County residents to use precaution if an animal is behaving abnormally, is unusually aggressive or friendly. All suspected animals, dead or alive, should be reported to the Town’s Animal Control Officer, Wes Powell, or the Columbia County Department of Health.
If someone is bitten by a rabid-acting animal, every effort should be made to locate the animal and have it captured for testing. Animals with a high rabies risk include raccoons, bats, skunks and foxes.
Rabies Also In Rensselaer County
According to the New York State Department of Health, from January to October in 2012, rabies was confirmed in six animals in Columbia County (one cat, one skunk, two bats, one fox and one raccoon) and in two animals in Rensselaer County (one fox and one raccoon).
Residents of both Counties are advised to make sure their pets have been properly vaccinated. The next free rabies clinic in Columbia County will be held at the Town Highway Garage on Maple Lane in Ancramdale on March 16. In Rensselaer County, the next clinic is at Mink’s Firehouse, 959 Broadway, Rensselaer on February 19.
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