A person bit by a rabid fox in a south Las Vegas neighborhood is receiving necessary medical treatments for exposure, a county official said Monday.
Clark County spokeswoman Jennifer Cooper said previously the county’s Animal Protection Services was notified that a person was bitten by a fox a week ago in the 9300 block of Jeremy Blaine Court, near Interstate 15 and Silverado Ranch Boulevard, and the fox tested positive for rabies. On Monday, Cooper provided more information in an email, saying both the adult as well as their pet dog “were bit by the fox.” The fox was a gray fox and both the individual and their pet were bitten while in their backyard.
“The dog was up to date on its vaccines and was not experiencing any medical issues,” Cooper said. “The dog will continue to be monitored for 45 days. The person is being treated by a medical professional through rabies exposure protocols.”
Cooper said there have been no additional reports of bites from the fox in the neighborhood and no people or pets are showing signs of rabies or illness. The fox was euthanized so the suspected rabies test could be performed, she said.
Cases of rabies exposure in Southern Nevada are rare. State Veterinarian Peter Rolfe of the Nevada Department of Agriculture said rabies is a virus that can infect any warm-blooded mammal.
“It takes pretty good contact, and what that is is typically from saliva or like neural tissue from an infected animal,” Rolfe said, adding “It is not a very common disease.”
The Southern Nevada Health District said Monday that “rabies exposures involving humans are uncommon in Clark County, and human rabies cases are extremely rare in the United States.”
The Health District receives reports of potential rabies exposures and conducts public health follow-ups to assess the risk of exposure, and to also help ensure individuals receive what is known as post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP).
“PEP is highly effective at preventing rabies when administered promptly after exposure,” the health district said.
Some mammals are more likely to be infected with the rabies virus than others. They include bats, bobcats, coyotes, foxes, raccoons and skunks. In Southern Nevada, bats are the most likely mammals to be infected with rabies.
Rolfe said in 2026 the Department of Agriculture tested 123 bats and 14 came back positive.
“We’ve tested lots of other mammals, domestic pets and other wildlife mammal species, and we haven’t had another detection other than this fox recently,” Rolfe said. “The bats we do get for testing, they’ve had human exposure, pet exposure, or they are exhibiting signs of illness.”
Rolfe said it is important to make sure one’s pets are up to date on their vaccinations.
“Any wildlife that is acting abnormal or looking ill or sick, my recommendation is keep your distance,” he said.
The neighborhood where the bite occurred is a mix of residential homes, new home construction and empty desert lots not too far from the South Point resort.
Residents in the area said they received a notification about the fox bite from their homeowners associations. Carl Christofferson said at first he didn’t think too much of it but then found out “there was a fox that was attacking people.”
“I didn’t think it was that serious but then a couple days later they said it had rabies,” Christofferson said.
Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
