Officials investigating three rabies cases in southern Arizona
Jan 21, 2018, 4:24 PM
(Flickr/Marc Evans)
(Flickr/Marc Evans)
PHOENIX — Officials are reportedly investigating three cases of rabies in southern Arizona and suspect that foxes in the area are carrying the disease.
According to KJZZ, Arizona Game and Wish wardens believe the virus has transmitted from the foxes to nearby coyote packs. A coyote was caught and tested for rabies but the results have not come back yet.
A woman was bit by a coyote last week near Tucson’s west side, Mark Hart with Arizona Game and Fish said. Coyote bites are “very unusual” for the area, Hart said.
“We don’t often get a coyote bite here. Maybe one or two in the whole state, usually in Phoenix where there are more people,” he said.
Hart said residents, hikers and hunters should avoid dead animals if they see them and should keep their pets at bay, even if they have had a rabies vaccine.
“If [pets] have come in contact with a rabid animal dead or not, they are subject to quarantine,” Hart said.
But if you do find yourself in contact with a dead animal, Hart said to call Arizona Game and Fish or animal control. Some signs of rabies infection in animals include acting disoriented, staggering, drooling, extreme thirst and extreme aggression.
