Westchester Officials Warn Rabid Fox On The Loose After String Of Attacks
YORKTOWN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Westchester officials are warning residents of a rabid fox on the loose which has already attacked three people in Yorktown since Saturday.
One woman who took video of the fox ruffling through a plastic beach pail on Sunday opted to stay safe behind a screen door. On the same day just down the block on Manchester Road, Kathy Coakley says she found herself face to face with the erratic animal.
"I got about halfway into the backyard and that's when I noticed the fox laying in the middle of the yard," Coakley told CBS2.
She knew she couldn't outrun it, so she waved her arms in hopes of scaring it away.
"It jumped up on me and was scratching at me and trying to bite my arm and my leg, but my pants were big enough where it was grabbing a hold of the material and not my skin," Coakley said.
The fox's teeth did manage to break skin on her knee and ankle. Coakley was the third person attacked in her neighborhood in just two days, prompting the Westchester County Health Department to issue a warning to residents with robo-calls. They say the fox also bit a jogger on Lee Boulevard and a man in his yard on North Deerfield Avenue on Saturday morning.
Officials say to look out for animals that are acting odd. Rabies can make them abnormally aggressive or unusually tame. In some cases, it can even make an animal lose its fear of people. Emily Marino hid in her car for a half an hour Friday while the fox blocked her path to her front door.
"He came up to the passenger side door and was looking right at me," she said. "The fox was jumping up trying to pull down the laundry, which is so oddball."
Authorities say all three attack victims are receiving preventative rabies treatment. Anyone else who may have come in contact with the fox should call the Health Department at (914) 813-5000.
