I like to read Pro-MED, the newsletter of the International Society for Infectious Diseases, to learn what deadly diseases are circulating around the planet.

Today’s newsletter offers news stories about incidents involving rabies in Virginia, Idaho, South Carolina, Montana and Florida. These stories have a real Americana feel to them, with unintended humor and commentary by Pro-MED moderators. However, these are not tales about the cute, clever, endearing critters found in children’s books — these are crazed, deadly, demons with saliva that can rot your brain. Enjoy!

Chesterfield County authorities say a cat that was attacked by a rabid raccoon has been euthanized. Chesterfield County police say the cat fled after he was attacked last week. The raccoon later tested positive for rabies. The cat eventually returned home with severe injuries. Because it had not been vaccinated, the cat was euthanized in accordance with state law.

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The state Department of Health and Welfare says a boy was scratched by a rabid bat while swimming at a pond in southwestern Idaho earlier this week.

The agency says the child, who was visiting from Oregon, is undergoing treatment for exposure to rabies, which can cause a deadly viral illness without medical attention.

Bats are the only animals in Idaho known to naturally carry the rabies virus. The bat that scratched the Oregon boy is the 3rd in Idaho to test positive for rabies this year. Last year, 8 bats tested positive for rabies in Idaho.

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A calf that died Wednesday in Ararat tested positive for rabies, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

The calf died of suspicious causes on a farm in the Ararat section of Patrick County, according to a Department of Health news release. The calf was subsequently tested, and it was confirmed positive for rabies.

The farm owner and one other person have begun post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) as a result of their exposure to the rabid calf, the release states. The owner also has 16 other cows that are considered to have had a possible exposure to the rabid calf. Those cows will be placed under 6-month observation.

Rabies is a fatal disease that is caused by a virus. The rabies virus is present predominantly in the saliva and nervous tissue (brain and nerve cells) of infected animals and is transmitted most often by a bite, the release states. Rabies causes inflammation of the brain and is almost always fatal once symptoms develop.

Commentary:
[Cattle of all ages are susceptible to the virus. While this article does not tell us what animal the calf may have come in contact with, it is often a skunk or raccoon, as the curious younger (be it horse or cow) sticks its nose in the unstable intruder’s face (the raccoon or skunk) and promptly gets bitten. This is a great reminder that cattle, especially show animals that are handled on a regular basis represent a risk to human health. Those animals should be vaccinated against rabies. – Mod.TG]

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Idaho health officials say 5 bats have been confirmed to carry rabies, which is potentially deadly for humans. 2 of those bats were confirmed Friday. Two of the rabid bats came in contact with a Garden Valley man who says he’s fed up with this potentially dangerous animal.

“I’ve always had bats around my house because they are a good bug-getter. My neighbor and I, we both talk about them, they’re not harming a thing — they’re getting a lot of bugs. I know where they roost and everything, but it’s whole different story now that I’ve got rabid bats,” said the property owner.

Just last week the property owner was caring for his 6-year-old grandson, when a bat swooped down in the middle of the day. “The bat flew around a little bit and then went to his back, like attacked him,” said the property owner. That bat was tested and confirmed to have rabies. The grandson is now receiving a series of rabies vaccination shots.

Dr Leslie Tengelsen, the deputy State Epidemiologists says, “Rabies can be fatal in people and so it’s very important that we take any exposure to the disease very seriously.”

The property owner is worried after 2 run-ins with rabid bats. “They are a very good animal, bats are, they serve a purpose, but I’m not sure I want them if they’re going to have rabies,” he said.

Commentary:
[There is something very unjust about so many bats dying of white nose syndrome and here a property owner likes them and is faced with
rabies in the colony near his home. – Mod.TG]

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A Pelzer woman is under a physicians care after being attacked by a fox that tested positive for rabies, according to health officials.

“The woman was attacked as she approached the fox while it was attacking her dogs,” said Sue Ferguson with the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control [DHEC].

This is the 4th confirmed rabid animal in Greenville County so far this year [2010], and health officials are warning the public to avoid wild animals acting tame and tame animals acting wild. “If you think you have been exposed to the rabies virus through a bite, scratch or the saliva of a possibly infected animal, immediately wash the affected area with plenty of soap and water,” she said. “Then be sure to get medical attention and report the incident to DHEC.”

So the Pelzer woman recently attacked is undergoing preventative inoculations, a step necessary for anyone exposed to the saliva of a rabid animal in order to keep the virus from reaching the brain.

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Three recent incidents of exposures to bats in Gallatin, Teton, and Flathead counties have prompted health officials to remind people of the dangers of rabies and the importance of vaccinating pets.

According to the state Department of Livestock, 2 people are undergoing post-exposure treatment after being exposed to bats. Steve
Merritt, a DOL spokesman, said they weren’t bitten or scratched, but were close to the bats. In addition to the human exposure, an unvaccinated cat in that house is under a 180-day quarantine.

In a 2nd case, an unvaccinated dog that was possibly exposed to rabies via a bat also is quarantined. In another case, an unvaccinated cat was euthanized.

Rabies is a deadly viral disease, spread through the saliva, bites, or scratches from an infected animal, and causes swelling of the brain in mammals, including humans. Rabies is almost always fatal unless treated before symptoms appear, but remains a rare event in humans, causing only one or 2 deaths per year nationwide, according to the Centers for Disease Control. However, rabies kills more than 55 000 people worldwide each year, mainly in Asia and Africa.

Bats and skunks are the most common carriers of the disease in Montana. Rabies is a mandatory reportable disease in Montana.

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A 12-year-old Bismarck boy and his family are hoping the owner of 2 small white dogs will come forward with vaccination records so the
boy can discontinue rabies shots.

The boy came around a corner near Hillside Park as he was on his was to the swimming pool and apparently startled the dogs, one of which
bit him on the foot.

A woman, described as elderly with short gray hair, stopped to talk to the boy after the incident and both went on their separate ways.

The wound became infected and a doctor recommended the boy undergo a series of rabies shots, the 1st of which was administered Thursday [5
Aug 2010]. The doctor filed a report with the animal control division of the Bismarck Police. The series of shots will have to continue through the 1st week of September [2010] unless it can be determined the dogs’ rabies vaccinations are up to date.

Other than having to go in for a rabies shot once a week until the 1st week of September, the boy is doing fine.

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A raccoon that was found dead in Tazewell County has tested positive for rabies. Health officials say the raccoon was found dead Saturday in a subdivision in the Gratton area. A stray dog that carried the raccoon in its mouth is being confined and will be tested for rabies. There were no reports of humans being exposed to the raccoon.

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The 1st rabid animal case of the year was confirmed on Tuesday in Palm Beach County, according to the Palm Beach County Health Department.

A raccoon came into contact with 2 Rottweilers — both of which suffered cuts and scrapes — in Jupiter Farms on Sunday, according to health department spokesman Tim O’Connor.

The raccoon tested positive for rabies, according to the Florida State Laboratory in Lantana. There has been no human exposure.

The dogs are being examined by county Animal Care and Control to ensure their rabies vaccinations are up to date. If not, they face a mandatory 6 months in quarantine.

Commentary:
[The saga continues of urban life encroaching on wildlife habitat such that wildlife and humans, or pets, or both come into contact. Public health education makes every effort to reach out to the public, but it seems the public believes they are invincible and that rabies cannot touch their family.

Vaccination of your pets, including horses, show cattle, and ferrets as well as dogs and cats is an essential need to protect yourself. It will also prevent the loss of your pet in the event it comes in contact with a rabid animal. Rabies is deadly, to humans and pets. Vaccination is a cheap form of insurance. – Mod.TG]