Yellowknife (Dec 05/03) - With almost daily fox sightings at Weledeh Catholic school, principal Merril Dean says she worries it may be only a matter of time before a student gets too close and is bitten.

While a fox bite by itself might not translate into a life threatening situation, they are known carriers of rabies.

The last documented outbreak of the disease occurred near Diavik Diamond Mine three years ago.

It's currently not known whether any among the Yellowknife fox population are rabies carriers.

"It is a concern," says Dean. "I see them just about every day I come to work.

"I'm not sure if there are any more than usual but there are a lot of them."

She says officers with the Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development have been by the school to warn students not to approach wildlife but children -- the curious beings that they are -- may simply find it too tempting not take a closer peek when a fox strolls by.

Raymond Bourget, a senior wildlife officer with RWED, says the department is monitoring the situation at the school but hasn't trapped any there yet this winter.

He says the problem with placing live traps near the school is that they are often sabotaged by passersby in the neighbourhood who think they are doing the animals a favour.

"We have well-meaning people come by and close the traps shut," says Bourget.

Sometimes trapped foxes are euthanized if they appear sickly or overly habituated to humans but those that seem fit are given a quick ride out of town, says Bourget.

"The biggest problem with foxes that have grown up in town is they can't survive on their own," says Bourget.

He suspects that foxes around Yellowknife, including at Weledeh school, have grown accustomed to eating garbage during the winter, and even worse, people are feeding them.

A fed fox is potentially dangerous because it's often difficult to distinguish a habituated animal from one carrying rabies, said Bourget.

A rabid fox will lose its fear of man, even appear friendly, contrary to the typical stereotype of an enraged animal, foaming at the mouth.

"They can transmit the disease five days before they're foaming and frothing," says Bourget.