The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and the Rhode Island Department of Health announced that a coyote killed by a hiker with his bare hands has tested positive for rabies.
A hiker was attacked and bitten on the leg as he walked through woods in Johnston on Friday, police said. Police said the hiker pinned the coyote down by the neck, cutting off its air supply and killing it.
Officials said the same coyote appears to have attacked a dog walker in nearby Scituate the day before.
New York woman thought she was going to be eaten alive after struggling with a rabid fox in her front yard
On Friday, February 9th, a rabid coyote attacked a hiker in Rhode Island. 2024. Photo: A coyote stands in a parking lot in California on January 15, 2024. (Teyfan Coskun/Anadolu/Getty Images)
Under normal circumstances, it is unusual for coyotes to attack humans. Testing at RIDOH’s Rhode Island Health Laboratory confirmed rabies infection. Officials say this is the third case of a rabid coyote reported in Rhode Island since 1994.
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In January 2020, a man was attacked by a coyote while hiking in New Hampshire, and the man strangled the coyote to death with his bare hands, according to CBS News. The coyote was tested for rabies, but it is unclear whether the results were positive.
