June 11, 2008
Another Rabid Fox Alert!
What is it about fox attacks that seem almost funny, when they should be downright scary? Is it because foxes are smaller and cuter than say, mountain lions or bears? We can't help but notice that we've noted a number of rabid fox attacks in the region over the last few years. There was the one in Herndon in 2004, the one just last month in Arlington, and now NBC4 reports that another rabid fox has been captured in Gaithersburg.
A Gaithersburg woman called animal control on Sunday after a rabid fox chased her and her dogs while they were on a walk.That must have been terrifying. And yet, I'm practically giggling. Is it because I didn't grow up in a region that had foxes (I grew up in southern Arizona)? Is it because fox is also a word used to describe a sexy lady? Am I just a bad person? Help me figure this one out.The woman was walking near Green Park on Bickerstaff Way on Sunday morning when she came upon a fox in a storm drain.
The fox chased after the woman and followed her for about 50 yards before it fell into a grassy area.
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honestly, it would be funnier if she were chased by rabid squirrels, at least to me. or opossoms. opossoms are funny, especially because of the silent "o."
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Indeed, either squirrels or opossums would be funnier. But that still doesn't answer my question as to what it is about the nature of foxes that make them attacking humorous.
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I've seen a number of rabid cougars roaming hotel bars in the area.
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Let's not stoop to making fun of the hard-working foxes in the metro area.
I used to live in Montgomery County and take the MARC train to work in the morning. About 10 minutes before the train most days, a fox would trot down the tracks, heading towards Union Station.
It never occurred to me the fox could be rabid. I always just thought he was on his way to work downtown somewhere, just like I was. Ironically, I was carrying my lunch, but he wasn't.
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time to hijack this thread...
...am i the only one whose computer is having a really hard time with these coldplay ads? every time i accidentally mouseover one of them, it leads to my browser being rendered inoperable for about 2 minutes. can we trade them for some other band?
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I'm having the same problem, IMGoph.
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I watched a fox cross the road near Kirkwood Rd & Washington Blvd in Arlington. Just, what 100 yards from Murky Coffee?
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Nothing beats rabid rabbits.
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I heard a woman tell a story about getting attacked by a rabid raccoon on NPR once. It sounded like a freaking terrifying experience. It was like a mix of 28 Days Later and Cujo.
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Of course, it was much less terrifying than what followed: Ira Glass's smug voice and a bunch of mood music.
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but what about the rapid foxes?
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i've noticed a bunch off of kirkwood. a couple huge ones tho none were ever aggressive.
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Well, Sommer, I guess I'm not thinking they're funny. I'd probably piss my pants if one came after me. Now a rabid squirrel, I'd be like, "really?" And then have visions of Kathy Bates in Rat Race tricking people into driving off a cliff. Squirrels are just funny! Foxes -- eh.
Rabid hedgehogs, now there's a concept.
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Sommer - Having lived out in old ol' AZ for awhile, I wasn't sure about the "I didn't grow up in a region with foxes" comment/question. Arizona, including southern Arizona, has several species of foxes; at least according to the AZ Game and Fish Department: http://www.azgfd.gov/h_f/game_foxes.shtml.
Perhaps the oppresive heat lead you more frequently seek the climate controlled bliss of the indoors...as it did in my case.
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Crosstown Traffic, well I certainly never heard about any foxes in southern AZ before now. Coyotes, mountain lions, Gila monsters, to be sure. Who knew.
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I think rabid foxes are just funny because they're normally small and cute, but then I picture them suddenly morphing into a foaming leaping death machine when you get too close.
Small, cuddly death machines are always funny. Just ask Monty Python. Maybe the solution is for DC residents to start carrying Holy Hand Grenades???
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Sommer - While out there, you should have just looked in the mirror to know there were foxes in AZ.
grrr.
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Maybe if the metro area did more building up, than building further out upsetting the habitats of wild beasts, this wouldn't be happening as much.
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I see a future TV special in this: "When Fox Attacks!"
Hmm... I wonder what network it would be on.
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This is near one of the oddly mid-city wooded areas in Gaithersburg, so I'm not terribly surprised. When I lived in G'burg, I was near another one of those areas, and we'd occasionally hear foxes yelping really late at night, and deer would wander into my neighborhood. It happens.
And I can attest from the part of my youth spent in Arizona that there are indeed foxes. When I was visiting my Dad's house in South Phoenix as a teenager, I wished to be attacked repeatedly by many of the Mexican foxes in his neighborhood. Sexy, sexy foxes they were. I wanted to show them my $240 worth of pudding. Awww yeah.
Now I've gotten older, and would simply like to be attacked by Megan Fox (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1083271/). We'd totally cook, then we'd chill. Awww yeah, like I do every night baby.
~EEE~
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"Maybe if the metro area did more building up, than building further out upsetting the habitats of wild beasts, this wouldn't be happening as much."
I don't dispute that a lot of wilderness has been lost, but it could be more complicated than that. Perhaps we're seeing more foxes in the metropolitan DC area because we're seeing more coyotes in the mid-Atlantic generally.
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First, being chased by Megan Fox (rabid or not) would be awesome. And by chase I mean waiting for her to tackle me.
Second, perhaps the reason you find this amusing is because of Tod, the cute little fox from Disney's The Fox and the Hound. After that, they all look cute. Not deadly and voracious.
Third, after being awoken in the middle of the night by that eerie, chilling yelping... I don't think they are cute anymore.
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Way to channel your inner Levon, TripleE.
Is it possible that it wasn't a fox, but actually this dog? http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/doc/pet/713370732.html
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LOL! My mom just got bitten out in the country in Waldorf. It just came out of no where and bit her on the leg. It kept holding on until my brother was able to pull it off!