Wildlife experts say mange outbreak can be cured, seeks public help

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Wildlife rehabilitators said there’s a serious case of mange circulating in the fox population in Ballston Spa and they’re looking for the public’s help. NEWS10 has more on what the community can do to help before it’s too late.

A Ballston Spa where the property owner has traps set up, he hopes to catch foxes with mange. He said he had spotted some around his property but was compelled into action after he spotted one during the daytime, right on top of his pool cover.

“I was sitting in my home office and I was seeing two foxes playing in my front yard and they were looking, one was looking worse than the other, kind of scraggly, missing hair, stopping and scratching, laying down in the sun. And then a few days later, I noticed one that was laying on my pool cover,” said Ballston Spa resident Mark O’Dell. 

After that, he did his research and decided to contact Paula Sheridan at Heart of the Wild.

“We can account for five other deceased foxes that have died from mange since we started this mission of ours down here,” said Sheridan.

She said they’ve identified several more in the area with mange and they’re attempting to catch and treat them, but?

“It’s easier said than done,” said Sheridan. O’Dell added…“They are sly like a fox and it is difficult to trap them. We’ve put pine balls over the traps to make it mimic brush piles to get them more comfortable because they are smart. Just got to be patient. It’s going to happen. We’re going to get them. We’re going to help them,” said O’Dell.

Fox rehabilitators want more residents to contact them, so they can work together and set up more traps around the community.

Victoria Rasanen, at Critter’s Caretaker, is rehabbing a Ballston Spa fox now. She said they’ve diagnosed most cases they’ve come across…

“Basically it’s just mange, the fox that I currently have in here also had a broken leg and we’re addressing that,” said Rasanen.

They said there are no cases of rabies, but if you see an animal having a seizure with excessive salivation, it likely has rabies and animal control or a rehabilitator should be contacted immediately.

In Ballston Spa, O’Dell said he’s had one major takeaway.

“Mange is not a death sentence, but untreated it will be, so rather than have the foxes die, a slow death, I reached out to someone who can actually help them,” said O’Dell, who urges others to do the same.

Sheridan said all the foxes need is a single tablet of bravecto. And?

“And you also need the homeowner to work with you. You know, you need a homeowner that’s going to be there, active, watching the trap, rebating the trap, turning loose other animals that may go in the trap. So it’s definitely a group effort and we can’t do it, you know, alone. We need the community to help us help them,” said Sheridan.

“The more traps we can get out, the better we can maintain this mange outbreak that we’re having here in Ballston Spa,” said O’Dell. “The better we can manage this, the better the population is going to be moving forward.”

Sheridan said rodent repellent, and other pesticides, weaken the fox immune system and makes them more susceptible to mange.