With the warm weather come questions and concerns about rabies. Rabies is a disease that affects the brain and spinal cord and is caused by a virus. It is almost always fatal.
Rabies in humans is very rare in the U.S., but rabies in animals – especially wildlife – is common in most parts of the country including Maine.
The most common animals to contract rabies are raccoons, skunks, foxes, bats and, most recently, domestic cats. Animal rabies has also been found in non-vaccinated domestic animals in Maine.
The most dangerous type of exposure is a bite or scratch from an infected animal, especially if it breaks the skin. If you think you have been exposed to a wild animal (or unfamiliar domestic animal), follow the steps below to prevent developing rabies.
Immediately wash the wound with soap and water, and continue washing for at least 10 minutes. Call your doctor or health care provider as soon as you finish washing the wound. They will help you decide if you need to be treated for rabies. Follow their instructions completely.
Also, contact your town’s animal control officer. The town office, a selectman or your local law enforcement agency can tell you how to contact the officer. The animal control or a police officer will need your help in finding the animal that has bitten or scratched you.
If the animal is found and captured, it will be quarantined and observed or it will be euthanized and sent to the state public health laboratory in Augusta to be tested for rabies.
If your pet is bitten or scratched by an animal you think might be rabid, follow the same steps and notify your veterinarian.
For more information about rabies and its prevention, call the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention at (800) 821-5821, or go online to www.maine.gov/dhhs/boh.
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