Salem, Virginia

From Roanoke’s WSLS.com of July 10, 2007

Another Rabid Animal Confirmed in Our Area

The Virginia Department of Health confirmed a fox shot dead in Salem over the weekend had rabies.

Lewis Goode killed the aggressive fox after he said it picked a fight with his dog "Baylee."

"I heard [Baylee] fighting with something beside the house in the yard," Goode said.

He said the first round happened in the back yard.

He managed to get Baylee back inside but she escaped for round two in the front yard.

That's where Goode shot the fox.

It's the 14th confirmed case of rabies in the Roanoke Valley (Roanoke City, Roanoke County, and Salem) this year, according to VDH local administrator Dick Tabb.

Statistics available on the health department's website show only five cases of rabies reported in Roanoke and Roanoke County in all of 2006.

Since Baylee was up to date on all of her shots, animal control quarantined her at home for 45 days.

She can go outside on a leash.

If Goode had not been able to provide proof of her shots, the health department would have recommended Baylee be either put down, or kept in strict isolation for six months.