BATH

State officials said Wednesday that a fox that attacked a Bath man Monday night tested positive for rabies.

The 67-year-old man, who was bitten several times on the hand while working in his barn on Whiskeag Road, is receiving medical treatment, Bath Police Chief Mike Field said in a release issued Wednesday.

“For many types of bite wounds, immediate gentle irrigation with water or a dilute water povidone-iodine solution has been shown to markedly decrease the risk of bacterial infection,” the U.S. Centers for Disease Control’s website states. “Rabies postexposure vaccinations consists of a dose of human rabies immune globulin and four doses of rabies vaccine given on the day of the exposure, and then again on days 3, 7 and 14. The vaccine is given in a muscle, usually in the upper arm. This set of vaccinations is highly effective at preventing rabies if given as soon as possible following an exposure.”

According to the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, from January to July 2 of this year, two cases of rabies were reported in Bath and Woolwich. On April 30, a woodchuck tested rabid in Bath, and a raccoon was found to have rabies on June 6.

Field cautioned residents to call police if they see animals behaving unusually.

On Tuesday, Brunswick Animal Control Officer Heidi Nelson said, “People need to stay away from wildlife. Keep small pets inside and supervised when they’re outside, and take away the food source — do not feed your pets outside.”

Nelson also suggested that bird feeders be brought inside for the next two to three weeks.

“Birds have plenty of food right now,” she said.