CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Rabid Fox Attacks Woman in Ithaca, New York in Frightening Video — Animal Later Tested Positive for Rabies

 

A woman from Ithaca, New York was attacked by a rabid fox while she was talking on the phone and smoking outside her home.

The animal crept up on her from behind and bit her several times as she fought it off.

At one point you can see the woman using her hands to fling the animal on the ground.

The incident ended when she stepped on its head and a man came outdoors with a stick to rescue her.

A cousin of mine was attacked by a rabid fox in Ithaca, NY. She’s OK. But geez this video is crazy! pic.twitter.com/91aAHB6KME

— Ed Russo (@EdRussoWX) August 23, 2022

The rabid fox was later captured and killed. The animal tested positive for rabies.

Ed Russo from CBS 21 reported on the incident. Ed says the woman is his cousin.

If you haven’t heard… she sought medical attention immediately and is doing well and perfectly healthy. This same fox almost attacked someone else shortly after this but the fox was caught. The animal tested positive for rabies after it was killed humanely.

— Ed Russo (@EdRussoWX) August 24, 2022

CBS News has more.

A startling video of a fox attack in upstate New York surfaced online this week. The footage, which appeared to be recorded by home surveillance cameras and is timestamped July 25, shows a woman fending off the animal as it repeatedly attacks her in the front yard of her home in Ithaca.

The soundless clip spans roughly 45 seconds. At its start, the woman is seen standing near a driveway with a phone to her ear when the fox runs up from behind and latches onto her leg. The woman attempts to kick and shake the animal off of her several times. A man then runs over carrying a large stick, and as he approaches the fox, it runs away.

Ed Russo, a meteorologist at CBS Harrisburg affiliate WHP-TV, shared the video on social media recently and identified the woman as his cousin. “A cousin of mine was attacked by a rabid fox in Ithaca, NY,” he tweeted on Tuesday. “She’s OK. But geez this video is crazy!”

He said the fox tested positive for rabies after it was eventually caught and euthanized.

Russo shared the video with a similar message on Facebook around the same time. He later explained in the post’s comments section that the woman “sought medical attention immediately” following the attack and was “treated appropriately.”

The incident is reminiscent of the rabid bobcat attack filmed last year.