Overview
- Two swimmers, including Brandon Shortsleeve, were bitten by a beaver while swimming off Turtle Island on Lake George on July 4th and required medical attention for multiple bite and scratch wounds.
- New York State DEC investigators later recovered a dead beaver near the site that tested positive for rabies, though officials have not confirmed it was the same animal that attacked the swimmers.
- Both victims are reported to be recovering and have begun the post-exposure rabies vaccine series, the standard treatment to prevent the fatal disease after a suspected exposure.
- DEC officers say trapping the specific animal is nearly impossible, they are patrolling the area, and they urge boaters and swimmers to avoid contact with beavers and to report abnormal behavior.
- Officials note beavers are usually a 'dead-end' host for rabies so sustained colony spread is unlikely, and they point to a separate May incident in New Jersey as context for this rare pattern of aggressive beaver encounters this year.