Woman kills rabid fox with bare hands

TANNERSVILLE, Pa. (CNN/WFMZ) - A woman in Eastern Pennsylvania had to think fast after being attacked by a fox.

Rachel Cohen went to a friend's house so the two of them could go for a walk. A fox emerged from a drain spout, and the animal immediately started trying to bite Cohen's ankles.

Not only did Cohen need to defend herself, but she also wanted to kill it.

"I was just focused on, 'Must, must keep the animal so they can test it for rabies,' and, you know, obviously, you don't keep a wild animal. It had to be dead," said Cohen.

"It felt like a life-and-death battle with the forces of good and evil," added witness Karen de Balbian Verster.

Cohen eventually smothered the fox with a plastic bag.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission says the fox tested positive for rabies, and Cohen is now getting rabies shots. She was not bitten during the attack, but she did get scratched.