Unprecedented Disease Found in Alaska's Rabid Moose

A moose in Alaska has been diagnosed with rabies, a first for the state, after acting aggressively towards people. The moose was found stumbling, drooling profusely, and had bare patches of skin. Samples collected from the carcass showed the rabies virus in the brain, with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirming it was an Arctic Fox rabies variant. Wildlife officials believe the moose contracted the disease from a fox. While rabies in moose is rare, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game plans to test all brain samples from wild mammals found dead or euthanized from regions known to have fox rabies to better track the disease.