By CATHY DYSON

A 4-year-old boy in King George County was scratched and bitten last week by a stray cat that later tested positive for rabies.

The cat had been hanging around the home, in the rural area of Lambs Creek Church Road and Deer Lane, for several days, according to Animal Control Officer Kevin Eller. On Thursday, the "child walked by and the cat just kind of jumped on him," Eller said.

Eller said the boy's father got scratched when he tried to get the cat off the child. He said he believes both will require a series of rabies shots through the King George Health Department.

The cat was killed on the premises, Eller said, and sent to Richmond for testing.

Animal Control released some information about the incident through the King George Alert System on Monday afternoon.

Eller said his department didn't release information sooner because the incident happened in a contained area.

"We were thinking it was maybe the neighbor's cat," Eller said. "Once we found out it was a stray, we went ahead and released [the alert]."

Eller said this was the first rabies case that he knows of in the county since August 2011, when a cat attacked another cat and chased a man in the Dahlgren area.

Eller reminded people "that rabies does appear more than normal this time of year. It's nothing uncommon."

According to the alert, people who live in the immediate area and notice any animals acting out of the ordinary should contact Animal Control at 540/775-2120 or the Health Department at 540/775-3111.

Cathy Dyson: 540/374-5425
Email: cdyson@freelancestar.com