Health
Allegheny County will distribute vaccines to raccoons through August
More than 300,000 doses of rabies vaccine baits are expected to be distributed throughout Allegheny County by the end of August as part of an ongoing effort to curb the spread of rabies.
Over the past week, county staff and volunteers have been walking and driving through residential areas spraying the oral vaccine in areas where raccoons are easy to spot but pets and people might not.
“We don't throw it in somebody's yard. We don't throw it on school yards or sidewalks or places like that,” said Jamie Sokol, feeding program coordinator for the Allegheny County Health Department. “So the feeding is done very strategically – in woods, in storm drains.”
The vaccine baits, several different types used in the study, look like little green ravioli or ketchup packets covered in fish meal and a sweet-smelling waxy substance and are being dropped around central Allegheny County. Each bait contains a liquid vaccine that, once digested, immunizes the raccoons against rabies.
“Raccoons will eat anything, so you really need the scent to draw them there,” said Brian Zafranik, a rabies biologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Service, which has worked with Allegheny and other counties on the project for more than 20 years.
Most of the vaccine is used up within five days to two weeks of being administered.
Allegheny County is one of the westernmost areas where rabies is found in raccoons, which Sokol said makes it an important boundary to maintain. The program is an attempt to “gain very good coverage in the county and maintain that boundary and make sure that raccoons and rabies variants don't move westward,” she said.
Later that month, residents may see low-flying, slow-moving helicopters and fixed-wing planes dropping additional radioactive material over sparsely populated areas of the county.
The bait is not harmful to humans or pets, but Zafranik warned residents to avoid it if possible.
“If we just get rid of them, hopefully they'll be gone in a week or so, and everybody will be happier and healthier,” he said.
If the bait is within reach of pets or children, county officials recommend picking it up with gloves or a plastic bag before tossing it in a deeper hiding place.
This food does not pose any long-term health risks to domestic dogs or cats, but multiple ingestion may cause stomach upset. If your pet has put the food in their mouth, do not attempt to remove it from their mouth, as they may bite or vaccinate against humans. Contact your veterinarian if symptoms persist.
The vaccine will not cause rabies in humans, but it can cause skin irritation and infection. Residents who come into contact with the bait or the liquid vaccine contained in it should wash their hands and exposed skin with soap and water. If a rash develops, contact a medical professional immediately.
“Most of the reported animal rabies cases in Allegheny County are from wildlife, primarily raccoons. Anything we can do to reduce rabies in raccoons benefits public health throughout the county,” ACHD Acting Director Barbara Nightingale said. statement“A raccoon rabies vaccination program will not only reduce human exposure to the virus and associated medical costs, but it will also protect family pets from additional vaccinations, quarantine and, in some cases, culling.”
of Feeding It will continue until August 30th.
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