Wild Animals

In the late 1980s, while walking to the set for an appearance on NBC's "Late Night with David Letterman," Jack Hanna led a camel off a freight elevator and into a hallway. But the hall had a lower ceiling than the elevator. As Hanna led the animal down the hall, the camel knocked out the drop-ceiling panels one by one in its path. It's these kind of moments, and the allure of the animals Hanna brings on popular TV news and talk shows that have made Hanna a widely recognized figure and a regular on Letterman's show.

HAGERSTOWN -- A fox that was captured after it chased a housekeeper into a building late last week at the Potomac Center on Marshall Street has tested positive for rabies, according to a press release from the Humane Society of Washington County. No one was injured by the fox after it followed the housekeeper into one of the buildings and was trapped immediately in a vestibule, said Cathy Marshall, Potomac Center director. The fox paced in the vestibule for about 15 minutes before animal control workers arrived.

waynesboro@herald-mail.com Its antlers are on the rec room wall but there's still a hunk of venison from the buck that was shot three years ago languishing in the freezer. Roscoe wants it. A tiger, Roscoe is one of six big cats -- two tigers, two lions and two lynx -- living at the East Coast Exotic Animal Rescue at 320 Zoo Road in Fairfield, Pa. Each one eats about 40 pounds of meat every day. The 110 fifth-graders in Fairview Elementary School have adopted the rescue as a community service project.

shappell@herald-mail.com The 30-hour period between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday night contained a full circle of emotions that ended on a sour note for the Hagerstown-area couple who have been caring for a young deer since Sunday. Kevin and Starla Hall believed early Wednesday that the slightly injured deer, which they named Bucky, was going to be nursed back to health at a state facility and released. They now say authorities plan to kill the deer by this afternoon.

By RICHARD F. BELISLE / Staff Writer photo: JOE CROCETTA / staff photographer [ enlarge ] MERCERSBURG, Pa. - If a groundhog is wreaking havoc in your garden, Dennis Strock wants to be one of the first to know. "I'll come out and give you a cage to trap it. Catch it and bring it to my farm. It can live out its life here," said Strock, 55, a former Marine sharpshooter, ex-bodybuilder who in 1977 and 1978 and earned the title of Mr. Pennsylvania.

By KERRY LYNN FRALEY Staff Writer BOONSBORO - Most of her classmates squealed with excitement as Ranger Mark Spurrier pulled the large boa constrictor out of a black duffel bag and wrapped it around his body. But Greenbrier Elementary School fifth-grader Kelly-Jo Kibler sat hugging her shoulders and grimacing while her peers jockeyed for a better view of the snake - nearly 6 feet long and as thick as a grapefruit. "They just kind of look bad to me," said Kelly-Jo, 11, who said she's afraid of all snakes.

Facts from SPCA's board of directors To the editor: The staff and directors of the Humane Society of Washington County would like to address comments made in a recent letter to the editor. As we know, the issue of unwanted and abused animals is a very emotional topic and receiving accurate information is imperative. For this reason, we, as protectors of our homeless animals believe a response is necessary. Please consider the following information as an opportunity to view a different perspective from that of Mrs. Yeakle's.

Ten Washington County residents have started rabies shots because they were bitten over the weekend by wild animals. Rod MacRae, spokesman for the Washington County Health Department, said the incidents ranged from bat bites in the North End of Hagerstown to cat and raccoon bites in other parts of the county. "It's an ongoing problem," MacRae said. "We need to realize that rabies is well-established here. " The people who were bitten will receive an initial treatment and about five shots in the arm over the course of a month, MacRae said.

HAGERSTOWN - Pat Travis is very dedicated to her work as the rabies program coordinator for the Washington County Health Department. "I track all exposure reports in Washington County," Travis said. Those reports come from area police agencies and the Humane Society of Washington County. Travis described the incidence of rabies in Washington County as moderate, occurring mostly in wildlife and sometimes in barn cats. Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the central nervous system of mammals.

A man is facing animal cruelty charges after police found 10 exotic African cats in his vacant property last month. Ryan Houde, 28, of Charles Town, was charged with 10 counts of animal cruelty, according to a news release from the Charles Town Police Department. Houde turned himself in on June 5, police said, and posted bond of $7,500. On May 19, officers responded to a home at 51 Shutt Court after a man who was checking on the house reported what he believed to be either a cheetah or leopard in the basement.