By Dave Orrick
A wolf suspected of attacking a teenager in north-central Minnesota has tested negative for rabies, state officials announced Thursday.
But officials still can’t say for certain that was the animal that attacked the teen by grabbing the teen’s head with its jaws while the teen was lying on the ground.
The rare unprovoked attack, which left the 16-year-old with cuts and punctures to his face and head, occurred in the early morning hours Saturday at a U.S. Forest Service Campground on Lake Winnibigoshish. On Monday, wildlife officials trapped and killed a 75-pound male wolf suspected of biting the teen and tearing into tents in the campground.
That animal was tested for rabies, which can be diagnosed only by examining an animal’s brain. A Minnesota Department of Public Health laboratory confirmed the negative rabies test Wednesday, the Department of Natural Resources announced.
The DNR also reported the following, citing Health Department information:
“It is premature to say with 100 percent confidence that the wolf that tested negative for rabies is the wolf that inflicted the bites. That won’t be known — or may never be known — until DNA testing is complete. The youth’s shirt (a potential source of wolf saliva DNA) and wolf muscle tissue have been sent to a laboratory at the University of California-Davis for forensic analysis. The analysis is expected to take several weeks. The DNR will release the results when they are available.”
The U.S. Forest Service has reopened the West Winnie Campground, which had been closed since Saturday.
The University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory has conducted an initial examination of the wolf. The results of additional tests will take several weeks, at which time a final necropsy report will be issued.
Thursday’s announcements shed no further light on what might have prompted the attack.
Officials initially reported that the wolf trapped and shot to death had an abnormal jaw and a missing tooth. Wildlife officials speculated that perhaps the deformity made it difficult for the wolf to attack large prey, such as deer, as wolves normally do.