Recent wildlife attacks around Tucson prompt rabies warning
Wildlife officials are warning people to be on the lookout for rabid animals after a rash of attacks around Tucson over the past two months. State and federal wildlife officials are warning people to be vigilant for rabies following a rash of attacks around Tucson in the past two months. The latest attack occurred in the Rincon Mountain District of Saguaro National Park on Sunday, when a bobcat bit and scratched a man. The National Park Service also issued a warning about rabies at Saguario National Park after staff members found several dead foxes in the park. The only confirmed case so far involved a bob cat that attacked a woman on Nov. 27, which tested positive for the fatal disease after it was captured and killed. The Park Service has also advised visitors to vaccinate their pets for Rabies and keep them on a 6-foot leash at all times.
Published : 4 months ago by henry brean, Henry Brean in Environment Science
State and federal wildlife officials are warning people to be on the lookout for rabid animals after a recent rash of attacks around Tucson in the past two months.
The latest attack occurred in the Rincon Mountain District of Saguaro National Park on Sunday, when a bobcat bit and scratched a man on Cactus Forest Drive. The man was treated at an emergency room and released following the attack, Hart said.
State wildlife officers responded to the scene but were unable to locate the animal. “We were out looking for it in the rain,” Hart said.
The National Park Service issued its own warning about rabies at Saguaro on Tuesday, after staff members recently found several dead foxes in the national park. The park has also received reports of abnormal behavior by foxes and raccoons there, on top of Sunday’s bobcat attack.
According to Hart, the only confirmed case so far was a bobcat that attacked a woman in her carport off east Redington Pass Road on Nov. 27. That animal tested positive for the fatal disease after it was captured and killed by authorities.
Rabies is also suspected in a Dec. 27 incident involving a gray fox at the Molino Basin campground in the Catalina Mountains. Hart said the fox bit one person and tried to attack another, but that person fended the animal off with a mountain bike.
The viral disease is spread through the saliva of an infected animal, typically as the result of a bite, a scratch or contact with the mucus membrane. It is curable with proper medical care shortly after exposure, but the virus is almost always fatal, even in humans, if left to advance untreated.
There’s no need to avoid the outdoors, even in the places where recent attacks have occurred, but officials said people should be on the lookout for animals behaving strangely. Possible warning signs include unsteady movements, disorientation, extreme thirst, excessive salivation and aggression.
The Park Service also reminded visitors to vaccinate their pets for rabies, keep them on a 6-foot leash at all times and only take them on trails where they are allowed. A veterinarian should be consulted if a pet comes into close contact or is bitten by a wild animal, park officials said.
Even so, confirmed cases are relatively rare. Fewer than 60 wild animals statewide tested positive for the virus last year, according to statistics from the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Topics: Wildlife