Rabies was found in a fox that tangled with a dog in Mulgrave, Nova Scotia. The fox and the dog were put down.
A fox killed in Mulgrave, Nova Scotia (town on the Strait of Canso) tested positive for rabies. The fox was shot by the owner of a dog who tangled with the fox. The dog’s owners later had the dog put down as a precaution (presumably the dog had not been immunized (vaccinated) against rabies).
Family members who had contact with the infected dead fox were treated for the rabies virus as a precaution.
A spokesperson with Nova Scotia Health Promotion and Protection said that the likely source of the rabies virus with which the fox was infected originated from a rat bite. Rats commonly carry the rabies virus and household pets who are bitten by infected bats or who have contact with infected wild animals may contract rabies and pass it on to their owners. Rabies is rare in wild animals in Nova Scotia. Really, what are the chances of being bitten by a bat? A bat bite is only one way that an animal can contract the virus: feeding on the carcass of an infected bat may also expose animals to the virus.
Rabies symptoms generally take several weeks to months to develop in humans exposed to the virus. People who have had contact with bats or other infected animals are advised to seek treatment (prophylactic treatment) as a precaution against infection.
Read more about rabies and rabies vaccine:
Canine Rabies: U.S. Free of Canine Rabies
Source:
Simpson J. Rabies found in fox that tangled with Mulgrave dog. The Chronicle Herald; Thursday, December 20, 2007.
