According to the Hays County Sheriff’s Office, a fox tested positive for rabies after it bit a pedestrian outside a Wimberley home on May 9.
After the bite, the fox was tested by the Department of State Health Services, where it tested positive for the virus, which is nearly 100% fatal if untreated.
The incident in Wimberley marks the second time in a week that a fox suspected of carrying rabies has attacked someone in Hays County.
On Monday, May 12, the city of San Marcos sent out a press release that stated four individuals were being treated for rabies after exposure to a fox in the Purgatory Creek Natural Area. Two of the individuals reported being bitten by the fox.
“Foxes rarely attack humans, and the unusual behavior raises concerns that the animal may be sick, potentially with the rabies virus,” San Marcos Animal Service Manager Christie Banduch said in the press release. “It’s important that any individuals who may have been exposed seek medical attention as soon as possible.”
According to Rodney E. Rohde, a College of Health Professions professor and the chair for Texas State’s medical laboratory science program, medical treatment should be sought immediately after any animal bites.
“From a medical perspective, it’s just super critical to get that treatment started ASAP, because it’s time dependent. If you wait too long, it’s not a good outcome,” Rohde said. “I mean, there have been a handful of survivors, but like not many and a lot of times, they’ll have other issues.”
Rohde said treatment includes immediately washing the wound, getting human rabies immune globulin injections around the wound, then a series of four rabies shots, or five for immunocompromised individuals.
According to the press release, the natural area remains open to the public, but they advise people to stay away from the Beatrice, Dante and Ripheus trails while the incident is investigated.
The press release stated that city staff are working with the Department of State Health Services Zoonosis Division to investigate the Purgatory Creek attacks. If the fox is not found, they will assume it was infected with the rabies virus.
According to Rohde, there are two strains of rabies virus in Texas: skunk rabies and bat rabies. While the strain in the two recent incidents in Hays County has not been confirmed, Rohde said it is most likely skunk rabies.
According to a map released by the Texas Department of State Health Services, as of May 13, 69 out of the 116 cases, about 59% of cases, in 2025 have been skunk rabies.
“We have an ongoing skunk, it’s called an epizootic, it’s an outbreak of a pathogen within an animal population. So we have a skunk problem with rabies,” Rohde said.
Rohde said he believes it is possible to eliminate skunk rabies in Texas, but it would take political will and funding to do so. He said eliminating bat rabies is unlikely with today’s methods.
“We’ll have bats that we have to worry about, because you really can’t do much with animals that can fly and get away from you, but they are looking into skunk oral vaccines, like we did with foxes and coyotes,” Rohde said.
The Hays County Sheriff’s Office is encouraging individuals who have been in physical contact with a wild animal to contact them at 512-393-7896 or the Department of State Health Services Zoonosis Division at 254-778-6744.
The city of San Marcos is encouraging anyone who may have been exposed to contact Animal Services at 512-805-2655.
This is a developing story. The University Star will provide updates as they become available.
