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Massachusetts woman attacked by rabid woodchuck while jogging
By WFXT
Sept 16, 2016A Massachusetts woman who was attacked by a rabid woodchuck this week is sharing her story.
Jodi Mogan of Medway was on a morning jog when the animal chased her and repeatedly tried to bite her, WFXT reported.
“All of a sudden, he turned around and made a direct run toward me which completely startled me, and then he came after me, and was at my feet trying to bite me,” Mogan said. “There was no way that I would've been able to outrun that animal.”
Mogan said she posted about the ordeal on a community Facebook page, but she was ridiculed and received mocking responses.
“It was a very unfortunate thing that happened to me. It was traumatizing,” Mogan said. “It's not a joke. It could happen to somebody's kid, it could happen to an elderly person.”
Eventually a car stopped and strangers came to her aid.
“I kicked it so hard that it went back flying into the woods, and the gentleman opened up his door and yelled to me, 'get in', and, as I was running toward the car, the woodchuck again came after me,” she said.
Medway Animal Control officials caught and euthanized the woodchuck, which later tested positive for rabies. Mogan is getting a series of preventative shots even though she wasn’t bitten.
“I can't tell you that I will be out running any time soon again,” she said. “I have a huge fear now.”
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