ENFIELD — Enfield police and New Hampshire Fish and Game officials believe that the threat of potentially rabid gray foxes in Enfield has passed.
“It seems to me … like maybe the rabies has run its course and those that were affected have met their demise,” Lt. James Kneeland, district 3 chief at New Hampshire Fish and Game, said in a Monday phone interview. He added that the department did not receive any calls over the weekend about potential rabid foxes and that an officer who patrolled the area did not come into contact with any aggressive foxes.
Enfield Police Chief Roy Holland said Monday that, based on his review of weekend call logs, the department did not receive any calls about aggressive foxes. On Tuesday afternoon, he confirmed that no further calls had been received.
Over the weekend, officers in both departments patrolled the area near Meadow Lane and Bud Mil Road where a rabid fox attacked a mother and child the evening of Sunday, Aug. 17. The animal, which was killed by the mother’s husband during the attack, tested positive for rabies last Tuesday.
In the days that followed, residents reported other encounters with aggressive foxes, prompting Enfield police to set out traps. Fish and game officers set up patrols.
While Kneeland said he can’t guarantee that the threat has passed, “it just seems like in this particular location this little family unit is not posing the threat it did last week,” he said. “People should still be vigilant and all that.”