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Conover man attacked by a rabid fox
Bloom tried karate kicks and wrestling moves before shooting fox
By KIM GILLILAND
Record Staff Writer
Jul 17, 2002
http://www.hickoryrecord.com/news/MGBTYQ1QQ3D.html

CONOVER – It took three shots with a .40-caliber pistol to get a rabid
fox off Brian Bloom’s leg on Saturday.

Bloom, who lives at 1721 Third St., NE, in Conover, was bitten on the
leg by the fox, which the state lab in Raleigh confirmed tested positive
for the rabies virus on Tuesday. Bloom, who suffered no ill effects from
the bite, has received rabies vaccine shots at Catawba Valley Medical
Center since Saturday as a preventive measure.

The seventh confirmed case of rabies in Catawba County for the year
2002, this case is the first that does not involve a raccoon, according
to Catawba County Animal Control.
Bloom said he left his house at 6 p.m. Saturday to investigate animal
sounds in his front yard.

“I came up in my yard, and all of a sudden I saw him,” said Bloom. “It
happened so fast I couldn’t tell if he was rabid or not. The fox came
out from under my car and charged at me.”
Bloom tried in vain to fight off the animal.

“I kicked his snout with my right leg, and then he bit me in the left
leg,” said Bloom. “I then tried a couple of karate moves, and tried to
snap its neck, but he wouldn’t let go. Then when I started to choke him,
my fiancee got me my pistol, and I shot him one time with my .40-caliber
hollow points, but he didn’t budge. I shot him again, and then a third
time, but he still had a-hold of my leg. My fiancee finally got a stick
and pried his mouth open, but he was dead by then.”

Bloom called Animal Control and the Conover Police Department.

“They took the fox away, and told me that I should go ahead and get
treated, because they said it looked like something was wrong with the
fox,” said Bloom.

Treatment started immediately with a series of pre-exposure shots.

According to the U.S. Department of Health’s Center for Disease Control
Web site, these pre-exposure shots are given to eliminate the need for
human rabies immune globulin (HRIG), and decreases the number of vaccine
doses needed.

The shots also may enhance immunity in people whose post-exposure
therapy might be delayed.

“They gave me a tetanus shot first, then they shot me in the left calf
twice, the thigh, right and left arm, and in the butt, both sides,” said
Bloom.

A three-month round of vaccinations will follow for Bloom.

“They also told me I would have to undergo treatment for the next few
weeks, and who knows how many shots that will be.”

The CDC says the treatments are post-exposure shots given to people
possibly exposed to a rabid animal, as in Bloom’s case.

After the first vaccine is given, additional doses are administered on
days 3, 7, 14, and 28 following the attack. According to the CDC, there
have been no vaccine failures in the United States when post-exposure
treatments are administered.

The CDC also says if someone is exposed to a potentially rabid animal,
he or she should wash the wound thoroughly with soap and water and seek
immediate medical attention.

A health-care provider will care for the wound and assess the risk for
rabies exposure.

The important factor is that someone seeks care promptly after being
bitten.

There is no treatment for rabies after symptoms of the disease appear.
Every year in the U.S., an estimated 18,000 people receive pre-exposure
vaccines, and an additional 40,000 receive post-exposure vaccinations.

“I know that they saved my life,” said Bloom.
“That was one crazy fox, and I hope I never see one like that again.”

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