Record-Journal
08-21-2007, 01:30 AM
MERIDEN -- If you see a bald fox, don’t touch it.
That’s the message that Beth Pleines, treasurer of the Westside Neighborhood Association, is trying to get out to members.
A fox, which Pleines believes has mange, a parasitic infestation of the skin, has been seen in her west-side neighborhood by Pleines and several others.
Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Dwayne Gardner said that there is no need for alarm, however. He explained that mange causes hair loss in humans and animals, but does not in any way make them violent or aggressive. Foxes are naturally afraid of humans and will almost never attack.
Pleines noted that there was a possibility of the parasites the fox is infected with getting knocked off in someone’s backyard, and that they could theoretically get passed on to a human or pet.
However, Gardener said that the odds are solidly against such a transmission, and that as long as there is no physical contact, it would be pretty hard to get mange. If a person or pet does contract it, antibiotics and creams are capable of getting rid of the parasites.
“Ordinarily, mange is not something people need to be concerned with,” Gardner said.
The fox is almost completely bald, Pleines said, and has been seen wandering on Buckingham Street, Lambert Avenue, Park Place and Harvard Avenue. She said that it once jumped into the back seat of an open car door to get at groceries that had been left inside.
“We’re just concerned about the area residents that are walking their dogs and their kids are playing in the area,” she said.
Pleines has been talking with the DEP, Meriden police and the United States Humane Society, who have so far not shown interest in removing or destroying the fox. Gardner said that while the DEP will immediately deal with rabies-infected or otherwise dangerous animals, a mange-infected fox poses no problems.
Sgt. Sal Nesci of the Meriden Police Department said that the department’s protocol in cases of animal control is that if the animal is believed to be rabid and displaying symptoms such as an unsteady gait, frothing at the mouth, or being overly aggressive, then the police will generally respond to evaluate the situation.
But absent these signs, the mere sighting of a fox would not be cause to respond.
“We refer all other animal nuisance complaints to the DEP or the DEP Web site for further consultation,” he said.
The Westside Neighborhood Association is holding an ice-cream social at Amelia Mustone Park at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Pleines hopes to spread the word there to other members about staying away from the fox.
That’s the message that Beth Pleines, treasurer of the Westside Neighborhood Association, is trying to get out to members.
A fox, which Pleines believes has mange, a parasitic infestation of the skin, has been seen in her west-side neighborhood by Pleines and several others.
Department of Environmental Protection spokesman Dwayne Gardner said that there is no need for alarm, however. He explained that mange causes hair loss in humans and animals, but does not in any way make them violent or aggressive. Foxes are naturally afraid of humans and will almost never attack.
Pleines noted that there was a possibility of the parasites the fox is infected with getting knocked off in someone’s backyard, and that they could theoretically get passed on to a human or pet.
However, Gardener said that the odds are solidly against such a transmission, and that as long as there is no physical contact, it would be pretty hard to get mange. If a person or pet does contract it, antibiotics and creams are capable of getting rid of the parasites.
“Ordinarily, mange is not something people need to be concerned with,” Gardner said.
The fox is almost completely bald, Pleines said, and has been seen wandering on Buckingham Street, Lambert Avenue, Park Place and Harvard Avenue. She said that it once jumped into the back seat of an open car door to get at groceries that had been left inside.
“We’re just concerned about the area residents that are walking their dogs and their kids are playing in the area,” she said.
Pleines has been talking with the DEP, Meriden police and the United States Humane Society, who have so far not shown interest in removing or destroying the fox. Gardner said that while the DEP will immediately deal with rabies-infected or otherwise dangerous animals, a mange-infected fox poses no problems.
Sgt. Sal Nesci of the Meriden Police Department said that the department’s protocol in cases of animal control is that if the animal is believed to be rabid and displaying symptoms such as an unsteady gait, frothing at the mouth, or being overly aggressive, then the police will generally respond to evaluate the situation.
But absent these signs, the mere sighting of a fox would not be cause to respond.
“We refer all other animal nuisance complaints to the DEP or the DEP Web site for further consultation,” he said.
The Westside Neighborhood Association is holding an ice-cream social at Amelia Mustone Park at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Pleines hopes to spread the word there to other members about staying away from the fox.