MONMOUTH COUNTY, N.J. — A raccoon that attacked an 83-year-old woman and likely bit a dog in a 24-hour span was captured and tested for rabies and is expected to be euthanized, officials said.
The raccoon attacked Ani DiPasquale on Wednesday afternoon while she was on her back porch, biting her hand, back and ankle, 12 News New Jersey reported. A neighbor chased off the raccoon with a shovel. DiPasquale was taken to a hospital and given rabies shots.
Lab tests will determine if the raccoon had rabies or any other diseases.
Officials believe the same raccoon bit a dog around 3 p.m. Thursday before it was captured, NJ.com reported. The dog was taken to a veterinarian and appeared to be OK.
An outbreak of canine distemper, which has symptoms similar to those of rabies, killed nearly 45 raccoons in October in Ocean County.