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Rabid raccoon captured in Rockaway
(by David Jimenez - October 01, 2008)
The Rockaway Borough Health Department issued a public notice last week alerting borough residents that a pair of rabid adult raccoons was captured in a wooded area north of Jackson Avenue.
“It is not unusual to find raccoons or skunks wandering near the perimeter of residential areas,” said Mark Caputo, borough Health Officer. “What was odd this time, which persuaded a resident to alert us, was that two raccoons had been spotted fighting and making noises, a bizarre behavior pattern for normally docile animals.”
According to Caputo, Animal Control Officer Norma Jacobs captured the animals using a pole and rope device to transfer the rabid raccoons to a metal cage. She then delivered the pair to a veterinarian who euthanized them. Brain tissue of the deceased animals was then sent to the New Jersey public health laboratories, in Trenton, where the laboratory analysis confirmed that the two animals were infected with rabies.
The center for Disease Control and Prevention reports approximately 7,000 cases of rabies nationally. “The first reported incident in New Jersey was in 1980. In Rockaway, we get about one case per year,” Caputo said.
An infected animal has the rabies virus in its saliva and can transmit it to a person or animal through biting. Health officials have advised residents to avoid contact with wild or stray animals, even though some, such as dogs, skunks and groundhogs, “may appear normal, they may not be, but in fact are infected and carry a variety of communicable diseases. So unless trained, do not handle wildlife,” Caputo said.
To reduce the spread of rabies and other diseases, the Health Department advises residents to report stray pets and any wild animal behaving strangely to health or police officers. To protect pets, officials advise that dogs and cats should be vaccinated against rabies. Because of widespread pet vaccination programs in the United States, transmission of rabies from dogs to people is very rare.
The borough receives health services through a shared service agreement with Randolph Township, whose Health Department is contracted to administer to borough residents a variety of services that include blood pressure checks, flu vaccinations, cancer and blood screening tests. For more information or assistance call 973-989-7050.
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