AUGUSTA (AP) – Two look-alike wolf-hybrid dogs who were euthanized so they could be tested for rabies after one of them bit a woman were not infected with the disease.

Dr. Kathleen Gensheimer of the Bureau of Health said Friday that even though neither of the 18-month-old animals had rabies, the episode could have been avoided if people didn’t adopt wild animals.

Gensheimer said there is no anti-rabies vaccine for wild animals such as wolf hybrids. She said other wild animals, such as foxes, bats and raccoons, are also killed to check for rabies if they bite people and are captured.

“Rabies is a lethal disease once symptoms develop,” she said.

The animals, a male and female, were placed in quarantine earlier this month after one of them bit Laura Charest of Sidney, who was unable to determine which was the attacker.

The animals belonged to Larry and Helen “Casey” Minoty.

Charest and her husband own the property where the Minotys lease a trailer. Charest said she was on the property to look for trash after Larry Minoty complained of trash strewn around the yard.

Charest received four stitches, a tetanus shot and antibiotics, but did not receive rabies vaccinations because she understood that the dogs would be put down for testing and she was concerned about the pain, side effects and cost of the shots.

Helen Minoty’s lawyer sought to have the animals spared. He said it would be wrong to kill both animals when only one of them bit Charest.

But Judge Michael Westcott followed the recommendation of the Bureau of Health and ordered both animals destroyed by lethal injection. Brain tissue was analyzed for rabies on Friday.

Roger Katz of Augusta, a lawyer for the Minotys, learned Friday that the rabies tests were negative.

“At the trial, there was no evidence that these dogs had rabies, and now we know for sure. Now we know neither of these dogs had to be killed,” he said.

AP-ES-07-17-04 1244EDT