Published Date: 2012-06-24 20:03:33
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Rabies - USA (12): (AL) raccoon, human exposure
Archive Number: 20120624.1179212
RABIES - USA (12): (ALABAMA) RACCOON, HUMAN EXPOSURE
Members of a rural Walker County family took home 2 baby raccoons found in a Baldwin County attic, unaware that one of them had rabies, according to information from state veterinarian Dee Jones.
A baby raccoon taken from the attic of a Baldwin County home, transported to rural Walker County, and later found to be infected with the rabies virus has resulted in the exposure of more than 20 people, who likely will have to endure a regimen of rabies preventative vaccines. Those exposed to the disease -- 14 people in Walker County and as many as 9 in Baldwin -- may be required to undergo regimens of rabies shots, he said.
The situation, Jones said, shows the dangers of taking in "cute, cuddly raccoons."
Dana Johnson, district rabies biologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Montgomery, said that the exposure of more than 20 people marks the largest such case in his 8 years in his position.
He said it was good that the other baby raccoon, as well as 2 littermates, tested negative for the virus. "Still, it might be that it's just not active, that it hadn't reached the brain where it could start shedding itself," he said.
Also of concern is that an infected raccoon was taken to an area of the state where raccoon-variant rabies is non-existent, Johnson said.
The raccoon strain afflicts some regions of Alabama but not others. For example, it occurs in Baldwin County but is very rare in Mobile County, and is found on the eastern side of the Coosa-Alabama river system but not on the western side.
"We believe the river systems act as a natural barrier," Johnson said.
He said, "Walker County has never had a case of raccoon variant rabies, but it could have been introduced for whatever reason if either of these raccoons had made it into the wild."
State law makes it illegal to transport wild animals anywhere in Alabama or to keep certain wild animals as pets.
When Johnson became aware of the rabid raccoon on Wednesday [20 Jun 2012], he contacted U.S. Department of Agriculture agent David Beatty in Bay Minette and state conservation Capt. Kenneth Blalock in Spanish Fort.
Beatty and Baldwin conservation Sgt. Henry Lowery were able to quickly track down the 2 littermates still in Baldwin, one in Elberta and the other in Summerdale.
According to Lowery, John A. Thorpe of Bon Secour found 2 of the baby raccoons in a neighbor's attic about a week ago, then located 2 more a short time later. Lowery said the mother raccoon was supposedly killed on the highway.
Thorpe eventually gave one raccoon each to Chris Moore of Elberta and Deena Townsend of Summerdale and 2 to Charles Stanley Barnett of Summerdale. Thorpe, 55; Moore, 27; Townsend, 43; and Barnett, 60, received conservation citations charging them with unlawful possession of a protected animal, Lowery said.
In turn, Barnett gave his raccoons to visiting family members, including grandchildren, who transported them to their home in the Double Springs community of Walker County. The community is located within the borders of the Bankhead National Forest.
Within days, one of the raccoons became sick, and the family took it to a local veterinarian, who suspected it could be rabid.
The Walker County Health Department was contacted. After the raccoon was euthanized, its head, where the active rabies virus would be concentrated in the brain, was forwarded to the state public health diagnostics lab in Montgomery.
The positive test result was confirmed Wednesday [20 Jun 2012].
Said Jones: "It's bad, but it could have been much worse. There has been a lot of work done over the past 2 days making sure the people who were exposed to this rabid raccoon will get the vaccine they need. ... But we wouldn't have had anyone working on it if those raccoons had been left alone. There are rabid raccoons in Baldwin County, and people just need to stay away from them."
http://www.promedmail.org/direct.php?id=20120624.1179212
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Published Date: 2012-06-21 18:24:34
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Rabies - USA: (GA) horse, human exposure
Archive Number: 20120621.1176209
RABIES - USA: (GEORGIA) HORSE, HUMAN EXPOSURE
Health officials say 6 people are receiving rabies treatments after being exposed to a rabid horse in Whitfield County in northwest Georgia. North Georgia Health District spokeswoman Jennifer King told The Daily Citizen of Dalton that the people had contact with the horse's saliva or mucus.
King said the horse, which was pastured near Dalton's municipal airport, began to show symptoms on 9 Jun 2012. Health officials don't know how the horse became infected, but it was likely bitten by a rabid wild animal. Other horses and cattle in the pasture have been given rabies vaccinations and will be closely monitored for the next 6 months.
Officials said that among wild animals, more than 80 percent of all positive laboratory cases in Georgia and the U.S. are from raccoons. This is the 2nd case of rabies confirmed in Whitfield County this year [2012]. The 1st was a raccoon in Dalton in April 2012 (http://daltondailycitizen.com/local/x1047715131/Rabid-horse-confirmed-near-Dalton).
http://www.promedmail.org/direct.php?id=20120621.1176209
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Rabies - USA (12): (AL) raccoon, human exposure
Archive Number: 20120624.1179212
RABIES - USA (12): (ALABAMA) RACCOON, HUMAN EXPOSURE
Members of a rural Walker County family took home 2 baby raccoons found in a Baldwin County attic, unaware that one of them had rabies, according to information from state veterinarian Dee Jones.
A baby raccoon taken from the attic of a Baldwin County home, transported to rural Walker County, and later found to be infected with the rabies virus has resulted in the exposure of more than 20 people, who likely will have to endure a regimen of rabies preventative vaccines. Those exposed to the disease -- 14 people in Walker County and as many as 9 in Baldwin -- may be required to undergo regimens of rabies shots, he said.
The situation, Jones said, shows the dangers of taking in "cute, cuddly raccoons."
Dana Johnson, district rabies biologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Montgomery, said that the exposure of more than 20 people marks the largest such case in his 8 years in his position.
He said it was good that the other baby raccoon, as well as 2 littermates, tested negative for the virus. "Still, it might be that it's just not active, that it hadn't reached the brain where it could start shedding itself," he said.
Also of concern is that an infected raccoon was taken to an area of the state where raccoon-variant rabies is non-existent, Johnson said.
The raccoon strain afflicts some regions of Alabama but not others. For example, it occurs in Baldwin County but is very rare in Mobile County, and is found on the eastern side of the Coosa-Alabama river system but not on the western side.
"We believe the river systems act as a natural barrier," Johnson said.
He said, "Walker County has never had a case of raccoon variant rabies, but it could have been introduced for whatever reason if either of these raccoons had made it into the wild."
State law makes it illegal to transport wild animals anywhere in Alabama or to keep certain wild animals as pets.
When Johnson became aware of the rabid raccoon on Wednesday [20 Jun 2012], he contacted U.S. Department of Agriculture agent David Beatty in Bay Minette and state conservation Capt. Kenneth Blalock in Spanish Fort.
Beatty and Baldwin conservation Sgt. Henry Lowery were able to quickly track down the 2 littermates still in Baldwin, one in Elberta and the other in Summerdale.
According to Lowery, John A. Thorpe of Bon Secour found 2 of the baby raccoons in a neighbor's attic about a week ago, then located 2 more a short time later. Lowery said the mother raccoon was supposedly killed on the highway.
Thorpe eventually gave one raccoon each to Chris Moore of Elberta and Deena Townsend of Summerdale and 2 to Charles Stanley Barnett of Summerdale. Thorpe, 55; Moore, 27; Townsend, 43; and Barnett, 60, received conservation citations charging them with unlawful possession of a protected animal, Lowery said.
In turn, Barnett gave his raccoons to visiting family members, including grandchildren, who transported them to their home in the Double Springs community of Walker County. The community is located within the borders of the Bankhead National Forest.
Within days, one of the raccoons became sick, and the family took it to a local veterinarian, who suspected it could be rabid.
The Walker County Health Department was contacted. After the raccoon was euthanized, its head, where the active rabies virus would be concentrated in the brain, was forwarded to the state public health diagnostics lab in Montgomery.
The positive test result was confirmed Wednesday [20 Jun 2012].
Said Jones: "It's bad, but it could have been much worse. There has been a lot of work done over the past 2 days making sure the people who were exposed to this rabid raccoon will get the vaccine they need. ... But we wouldn't have had anyone working on it if those raccoons had been left alone. There are rabid raccoons in Baldwin County, and people just need to stay away from them."
http://www.promedmail.org/direct.php?id=20120624.1179212
***********************************************************************
Published Date: 2012-06-21 18:24:34
Subject: PRO/AH/EDR> Rabies - USA: (GA) horse, human exposure
Archive Number: 20120621.1176209
RABIES - USA: (GEORGIA) HORSE, HUMAN EXPOSURE
Health officials say 6 people are receiving rabies treatments after being exposed to a rabid horse in Whitfield County in northwest Georgia. North Georgia Health District spokeswoman Jennifer King told The Daily Citizen of Dalton that the people had contact with the horse's saliva or mucus.
King said the horse, which was pastured near Dalton's municipal airport, began to show symptoms on 9 Jun 2012. Health officials don't know how the horse became infected, but it was likely bitten by a rabid wild animal. Other horses and cattle in the pasture have been given rabies vaccinations and will be closely monitored for the next 6 months.
Officials said that among wild animals, more than 80 percent of all positive laboratory cases in Georgia and the U.S. are from raccoons. This is the 2nd case of rabies confirmed in Whitfield County this year [2012]. The 1st was a raccoon in Dalton in April 2012 (http://daltondailycitizen.com/local/x1047715131/Rabid-horse-confirmed-near-Dalton).
http://www.promedmail.org/direct.php?id=20120621.1176209