AUBURN — A fox found dead near Old Carriage Estates this week may be the same animal that attacked a woman and several dogs earlier in the month.

The family of the 89-year-old woman who was attacked on Nov. 4 was notified this week that a gray fox had been found dead on a trail not far from the scene of the earlier attack. The dead animal was removed by the Maine Warden Service.

The 89-year-old had been walking on Old Carriage Road, off Hotel Road, in the afternoon when she was attacked by a fox. The woman fought the animal and was assisted by some neighbors who came to her aid. Nonetheless, she suffered 21 puncture wounds on her hands, lower legs and feet and had to endure a course of rabies treatments as a precaution.

When police arrived at the scene of that attack, the fox was no longer in the area, officials said. A short time later, police said, a caller reported that his dogs had been attacked by a fox on the walking trails at the nearby Granite Mills Estates.

It has not been determined if the fox responsible for the attacks was rabid.

According to the Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention, three animals — two skunks and a bat — have tested positive for rabies in Androscoggin County since the start of the year. The most recent was a skunk found to be rabid in Turner in June.

An official from the Maine Wardens Service said rabies cases tend to slack off this time of year as more animals go into hibernation.

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