The saga of the wild red fox — celebrated as a mascot, then hunted as an aggressive attacker, then killed and found to be rabid — grew darker after her kits were euthanized as well.
The three children of a fox captured on the grounds of the Capitol have been euthanized because they were exposed to their rabid mother, city health officials announced on Thursday, in yet another tragic turn to the canine saga that has gripped Washington. “Three fox kits were recovered from the den site of the female fox who tested positive for rabies,” the statement from D.C. Health said. “Since the mother tested positive for the rabies virus and the kits could have been exposed during grooming or other means, they were no longer able to be safely rehabilitated and were humanely euthanized.” The announcement added another grim revelation to the tale of a wild red fox who had roamed the grounds of the Capitol and briefly captivated those who live and work around Congress. Lawmakers, aides and journalists had initially reacted with bewilderment and admiration to the presence of the animal — and then with sorrow and alarm when the Capitol fox was euthanized so she could be tested for rabies. The late vixen’s children — known as kits — were found and captured on Wednesday, around the same time as their mother was caught. A statement from D.C. Health had said that officials were determining what to do with the youngsters.
