05/29/2026
Is this groundhog rabid? [Mechanicsville, Virginia]
This groundhog scared the daylights out of me. She didn't run when I went right up to the window and took some banging on the door to get her to leave. Could she have rabies?
Edit: Wow, this really blew up. I don't really have an update other than the health department hasn't called me back.
A few things to note: it's a mama groundhog and the babies are fairly large and foraging on their own. We've lived in harmony with them since we moved in and they've come up on the deck before looking for food, but I've never had one not run when they see me or I make a noise. It had just rained for about 5 days straight and our backyard is a luscious buffet of food for them, and I assume there's plenty of drinking water. Thanks for all the helpful and hilarious comments!
