Newark – Another Newark resident is undergoing treatment for possible rabies exposure.
On Sunday a Nottingham Green resident took to social media to report that he had been bitten by a raccoon in his driveway in the 100-block of Baylor Drive at around 10 p.m.
The resident sought treatment at an area hospital and reported the bite to police the next morning, according to Newark Police Spokesman Lt. Andrew Rubin.
Rubin said a raccoon has been trapped in the area where the bite occurred, but it cannot be confirmed that it was the same raccoon. The Newark Police Animal Control Officer is following-up on the report, Rubin added.
Since there is no way to know whether the animal has transmitted the rabies virus, preventive treatment is often recommended by doctors. It looks like the resident is taking that advice. The resident followed up on social media telling neighbors that he had started treatment.
” I did start my rabbis vaccine… i believe it came from under my car but it was 10 at night so I don’t know”, read the follow-up post.
The State of Delaware Department of Public Health has been contacted and they will decide whether to test the animal for rabies as it cannot be confirmed as the same animal, said Rubin.
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In July a Newark man was bitten by a raccoon while getting into his vehicle at Rittenhouse Park.
In that case, the raccoon was captured and test results confirmed it did have rabies.