An elderly man in Maine shares how he was able to fight off a rabid fox with nothing but a piece of wood.

“It didn’t shake me up. I’ve been in lots of other wild experiences this just adds one to the list,” Galen said.

95-year-old Robert Galen was repairing his porch when the unwelcome guest stopped by.  

He grabbed a piece of lumber from his yard when he spotted the fox just feet away from him.

“This was a more formidable beast than I was accustomed to seeing.”
He lives back off the road in the woods and is used to seeing wild animals, but after hearing a woman was attacked by a rabid animal last week, Galen wasn’t taking any chances.

With the piece of wood from his yard, he whacked the fox in the head.

“I had a weapon and I struck it on the head immediately,” Galen said. “I didn’t give it a chance to open its mouth.”

He laid a plank over the animal’s body until it eventually died and police came to take the fox away.

Officials later confirmed what they all suspected: The fox tested positive for rabies.

Still, Galen’s encounter with a sick animal won’t stop him from enjoying where he lives.

“I’m not timid, I’ll continue to do what I do in my yard and I’m not going to worry about encountering another wild animal.”

Animal control wants to remind residents not to feed the wildlife if you see an animal acting strangely, and call police instead.

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