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Meeting focuses on spread of rabies Frank Boyd of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services led a meeting June 25 to inform area officials of concerns over rabies spread by raccoons. There is no epidemic in Clarke County, however, there is activity, he said, that they do not want to spread the disease further west. Elected officials, area veterinarians, as well as health department and emergency management officials from Clarke, Choctaw and Washington counties were on hand for the afternoon meeting in the Clarke County Courthouse. "This is a cooperative effort to control rabies, a multi-agency effort" between wildlife, public health and conservation staff," Boyd said. According to the USDA Web site, "Rabies is a virus that infects the central nervous system in mammals. The disease is invariably fatal if left untreated; however, effective vaccines are available to protect people and pets. "Rabies is passed along through contact with an infected animal's saliva and is almost always transmitted when an infected animal bites an uninfected animal or person. People usually get rabies from the bite of a rabid animal. It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth or a wound. "We are a federal wildlife agency that deals with wildlife that are getting into conflict with man somehow," Boyd said of his agency. Boyd asked that the public notify the USDA if an animal with suspicious activity is seen. "It's going to act weird. There is going to be some general sickness." The same animal might have distemper, he said. "You're better off to leave it alone." People should not be concerned about raccoons that steal pet food. "There's nothing unusual about that," he said. Raccoons are the main carrier of rabies in Alabama, with skunks and bats next in line. Foxes can also carry the raccoon strain. Officials have been able to control rabies over the decades thanks to a majority of pet owners having their dogs and cats vaccinated every year. Pets must be vaccinated, dictated by state law. However, officials understand that animal vaccinations are not complied with often in rural areas. In addition, "it's not that big a problem in terms of human fatalities," Boyd said. "That's because we've got a very good public health system in place in the United States. By and large, if anyone has an exposure, there is a very good post-exposure treatment. You can go to the doctor and get treated. "…Surveillance is the key to any kind of disease program, particularly rabies. If we don't have good surveillance, it's hard to do any actual management or control. "…We don't get a lot of samples from this area." Boyd said officials are also concerned about people who transfer nuisance animals to another community and letting them loose. That's an easy way to spread the disease.
For more information, call Boyd at 1-334-844-5670, or browse to www.cdc.gov.
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