Medway woman attacked by rabid woodchuck while jogging

MEDWAY, Mass. — A local woman who was attacked by a rabid woodchuck this week is sharing her story.

The Medway mother was on a morning jog when the animal chased her and repeatedly tried to bite her.

FOX25 talked to the woman, who said she has gotten a lot of negative attention since the ordeal.

“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,” Jodi Mogan said. “There was no way that I would've been able to outrun that animal.”

Mogan told FOX25 she posted about the ordeal on a community Facebook page, but the response was mocking and ridicule.

“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 complete 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 caught and euthanized the woodchuck, which later tested positive for rabies. Now Mogan is getting a series of preventative shots even though she hadn’t been bitten.

“I can't tell you that I will be out running anytime soon again. I have a huge fear now,” she said.

Meanwhile, the town has posted a warning on its Facebook page.

"While there is no need to panic we do urge residents to exercise an abundance of caution if they encounter an aggressive wild animal,” the post said.

Cox Media Group