2nd Potentially Rabid Fox Still Sought At Double Trouble, DEP Says – Patch

BERKELEY, NJ — A fox that tested positive for rabies is not the same one responsible for an attack on two people and a dog at Double Trouble State Park, according to the state Department of Environmental Protection.
In a statement issued late Thursday, DEP officials said the fox found Tuesday that tested positive was a juvenile and was found “in another part of the park,” in a post on Facebook.
Double Trouble State Park remains closed, the DEP said.
“Based on descriptions provided by visitors, it is not believed to be the same animal involved in Monday’s incidents,” the DEP said. “In addition, the Park Service and Fish & Wildlife have no information at this time that any visitors were bitten or scratched by fox at the park.”
“The park remains closed until further notice. Protection of public health and safety is our first priority,” the statement said.
DEP officials on Friday morning said the fox involved in Monday’s incident was described by visitors as a thin adult that appeared mangy, and the fox that was tested Tuesday was a juvenile.
“The DEP says there are two incidents,” said Brian Lippai, spokesman for the Ocean County Health Department said Friday morning. “There’s still an animal suspected with rabies in the park.”

Lippai said the fox that was tested was found by Berkeley Township police along Pinewald Keswick Road near the entrance to the park and it was taken to the state epidemiologist for testing that night. The health department was notified about 11 a.m. Thursday of the positive rabies test, he said.
The standard protocol for handling an animal that may have rabies, Lippai said, is the town’s police or animal control will notify the county health department and bring it in.
“If our epidemiologist determines there’s a good reason to believe the animal has rabies, we send it to the state,” he said.
The county does not send every animal for testing because the test is expensive, Lippai said. The state then contacts the county health department, which can put out alerts as needed, such as when a feral cat with rabies attacked people in Manchester in June.
Lippai did not have information available about where in the park the people and dog in Monday’s incident encountered the fox, but said the usual procedure in cases of a dog bite is for the people involved to be interviewed.
Larry Hajna, a DEP spokesman, said the incident Monday was about a quarter to a half-mile from where the dead fox was found Tuesday.
Double Trouble State Park encompasses 8,000 acres in the Pinelands and has more than 8 miles of official, blazed trails, most of which are around the historic village and old cranberry bogs on the site. There is a Nature Trail that passes through a cedar swamp and across Cedar Creek between one of the bogs and the Sweetwater reservoir. There also is the Dover Forge Walk-In Area is the site of a former bog iron forge and cranberry bogs, which includes an unmarked third-of-a-mile walking trail to a scenic overview of Cedar Creek.

The park has long been popular with hikers, kayakers and canoeists, photographers, mountain bikers and horseback riders, with vehicles frequently seen parked along Pinewald Keswick Road and on two open parcels across the street from the park entrance.
The DEP said anyone with questions or concerns or who may have come into contact with the fox can call the New Jersey State Park Police through the DEP hotline, 877-WARNDEP (877-927-6337).
Lippai reiterated that people should never approach wild animals.
“Everyone wants to run up to the cute little raccoon,” he said, but “rabid animals come out of the blue.”
If you encounter an animal that is showing signs of sickness, contact police or animal control immediately. Some of the signs of rabies include an animal showing signs of being overly aggressive or overly friendly, drooling, and sometimes walking in circles.

Bats found on the ground should not be touched; call authorities to get them safely removed.
Anyone who is bitten by an animal should seek medical treatment immediately, Lippai said.
Note: This report has been updated with additional comment from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

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