Foxes that attacked Tucson museum worker test positive for rabies

Two foxes tested positive for rabies after attacking a Tucson museum worker on Wednesday, according to the Arizona Department of Game and Fish.

The foxes attacked a worker on Wednesday morning at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, but the worker did not sustain any injuries.

Game and Fish employees conducted a brief search, located and euthanized the two foxes who were suspected of being rabid.

Officials announced rabies test results were positive for both foxes.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum did not immediately respond to questions on whether the employee's status changed after the positive test results.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum said the facility took precautions and treated the employee as if the foxes were rabid to being with.

While the grounds of the museum were considered safe enough to reopen by Friday, Game and Fish said the residents in the area should leave immediately if they observe ill or aggressive wildlife and report the sighting to 623-236-7201.

Game and Fish added that anyone attacked by a wild animal should get a rabies shot.

Are cases of rabies on the rise in Arizona?

With 2024 now adding two new confirmed cases, the state was up to 24 total wild animals that tested positive for rabies, according to data from the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Of those confirmed rabies cases, 13 were foxes, with four in Tucson based Pima County, one each in Greenlee and Pinal Counties, and seven in Navajo County.

The total number of people exposed to rabies after the museum attack was now up to eight statewide for 2024, according to the data.

Anne Justice-Allen, wildlife veterinarian for Game and Fish, said cases of rabies across the state were not generally higher than average this year, but that an overall trend in more rabies cases had been seen in the past two years.

In 2022, there were a total of 49 animals positive for rabies and 59 cases in 2023, according to data provided by Justice-Allen.

The expert vet added that foxes and skunks were abundant after significant winter and summer rain across the state, making the environment ideal for these animals — and rabies — to thrive in the wild.

What animal attacks linked to rabies have happened in 2024?

The new attack adds to a concentration of three fox attacks in the Tucson in 2024.

The newest attack at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum makes the sixth time a fox attacked a person in the Tucson area, most of the cases linked to what is believed to be a rabid fox.

On April 4, a now-euthanized fox near the Hugh Norris Trail in Saguaro National Park attacked three people, all of whom had to be treated for rabies.

On March 28, a gray fox was captured and euthanized after the animal attacked a person in Tucson.

In December 2023, a suspected rabid gray fox also aggressively attacked two people near the Molino Base Campground in southern Arizona.

How can you stay safe from rabies?

The Arizona Department of Health Services said rabies is a serious viral disease that can be fatal if left untreated, and that anyone who may have been exposed to it or attacked by a wild animal should seek treatment.

Rabies is a virus spread by the bite of an infected animal or contact with infected saliva, causing damage to the central nervous system.

The Health Department said Arizonans should not touch or feed wild or unfamiliar animals, noting that rabies can occur in domestic animals like cats and dogs that often come in contact with infected wildlife.

The Health Department added that rabies was common in foxes as the animals were distributed in all but one Arizona county, Mohave, and that the variant of the virus is often transmitted to other desert dweller animals like coyotes, bobcats and javelina.

People should take special precautions to protect pets and children and seek immediate medical or veterinary attention.

The Health Department provided a list of the following tips;

• Keep people and pets away from wild animals.
• Never leave pet food in your yard because it will attract wild animals.
• Do not pick up, touch, or feed wild or unfamiliar animals, especially sick or wounded ones.
• If you have been bitten or scratched, or had contact with an animal, wash the wound or area well with soap and water, and report it immediately to animal control or health officials .
• Do not "rescue" abandoned young wild animals.
• Vaccinate all dogs and cats against rabies.
• Take precautions when camping, hunting or fishing. Avoid sleeping on the open ground without the protection of a closed tent or camper.
• Keep pets on a leash or in a fenced yard.
• Wear impermeable gloves when skinning carcasses.
• Do not disturb roosting bats.
• If you find a bat on the ground, don't touch it. Place a box over the bat to contain it. Try to preserve the bat so it is intact for testing at a laboratory. Report the bat and its location to animal control or health officials .
• Teach children not to handle or touch sick or injured animals including bats.
• Report all animal bites to animal control or health officials .

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Foxes that attacked Tucson museum worker test positive for rabies