Monday, June 11, 2012
Boulder, Colo. – Four bats found in Boulder County have tested positive for rabies. The bats were found in Longmont (1) and Boulder (3). Three of the bats were found on private property on a driveway or in a yard where family pets spend time.
Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system and is always fatal unless it is treated before any symptoms appear. So far this season, 5 bats found in Boulder County have tested positive for rabies. Across Colorado, 36 skunks, 18 bats, and 3 fox have tested positive for the disease so far this year.
“The most important message is to keep your pet’s vaccinations up-to-date, and keep them from interacting with wild animals,” said Lane Drager, Boulder County Public Health Consumer Protection Program coordinator. “Unfortunately, when a pet is not fully vaccinated and has contact with an animal infected with rabies they must be quarantined, or even worse, euthanized.”
Bats are the most common animal source of rabies in Colorado. On average, about 15 percent of bats submitted for rabies testing test positive for the disease. However, in the last few years skunks have been a significant source of rabies throughout eastern Colorado and the now the front range. Other wild animals that may carry rabies include raccoons and foxes.
“People are most commonly exposed to rabies when they take a bat away from a family pet, pick up a bat off the ground, or try to remove a bat from their house,” said Drager. “It’s normal to find a bat hanging under the eaves of a house, under a porch overhang, or hidden behind shutters or gutters but if you see one in the house or on the ground it’s a good indication that something is wrong.”
Exposure to rabies is generally the result of a bite or scratch by an infected animal, and it is sometimes practically undetectable, such as a tiny puncture of the skin by a bat. Treatment for rabies exposure involves a series of vaccinations.
Public health officials recommend that the following precautions be taken to reduce your risk of exposure to rabies:
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Do not disturb or touch any bat or other wild animal.. If you see a bat that is acting aggressively or appears to be ill, cover it with a box or can and notify animal control.
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If there is any possibility that a person or pet may have had contact with the bat – such as waking up to find a bat in the room – it is very important that the bat be carefully captured for testing. If the animal is released without testing, it will be assumed that the bat was infected with the rabies virus, and anyone who came in contact with the bat must receive the series of rabies shots. Again, rabies is fatal unless treated before symptoms appear.
- Contact your local animal control officer to assist with capturing the bat and delivering it for testing. To capture a bat for testing, wear heavy leather gloves, wait until the bat lands, place a coffee can or box over it, slide a piece of cardboard underneath it, and tape it down securely. Bats can escape through very small openings.
In 2011, 17 bats found in Boulder County tested positive for rabies. Across Colorado, 104 animals tested positive for the disease in 2011.
Residents that find a bat should call their local animal control office. For questions about human contact with a bat, call the Colorado Health Information Line at 1-877-462-2911.
For general information about rabies, visit http://www.bouldercountyvector.org/.
Chana Goussetis
Marketing and Communications Specialist
Boulder County Public Health
cgoussetis@bouldercounty.org
303-441-1457
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