HOGANSVILLE, Ga. — “It’s the craziest! I’ve never run across anything like that before. But when you see a loved one getting attacked, you do what have to do.” Shan Escalera explains the moment he dove on a rabid fox to save his wife and daughter from being attacked.
A girl’s frightening encounter with a rabid fox ended with her father choking out the animal on their property in Hogansville, according to police.
The girl was riding a four-wheeler in her backyard on Lincoln Street on May 3 when the fox began to chase her, according to Hogansville Police. At one point, the fox bit the back of the girl’s shirt and was hanging on to it while she was trying to run away from the animal. She told police that the fox scratched her right foot and ankle.
The girl’s mother was bitten by the animal while trying to pull it off her daughter, according to police. As they ran toward the house, the fox attacked the woman’s leg. That’s when her husband – the girl’s father – grabbed the fox by its neck.
He told police that he choked the fox with both hands until it was limp. While the animal gasped for air, the man told police he retrieved a shotgun from the house and fired one shot, killing the fox.
According to police, the animal was transported to the Troup County Animal Shelter for testing. The fox tested positive for rabies, according to the health department.
Police said they are continuing to monitor the area for other affected wildlife, along with the Department of Health and the Department of Natural Resources.
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