3rd Raccoon With Rabies Attacks In Douglas County

DOUGLASVILLE, GA -- Douglas County Animal Control Officers would like to warn residents that a third raccoon involved in an attack has tested positive for rabies. Douglas County Animal Control Officers responded to a report of a raccoon acting strangely in the backyard of a home with four dogs on Sweetwater Drive near Highway 5 on March 31.

The raccoon tested positive for rabies on April 3.

“This is the third one in five weeks and that is unusual,” said Rick Martin, Douglas County director of communications. “The four dogs have been confined and currently under a 45-day quarantine period.”

The most recent incident was March 27, when animal control responded to a report of a dog killing a raccoon in the downtown area of the city of Douglasville around Price Avenue and Church Street. The raccoon tested positive for rabies on March 29.

Douglas County Animal Control investigated the first incident of a confirmed rabid raccoon March 11, when Animal Control Officers responded to a complaint of two stray dogs standing over a dead raccoon in the vicinity of Colonial Trail, Scarlett Drive, and Tara Circle off Midway Road in Douglas County.

If your pets are not vaccinated for rabies, please have them vaccinated now. We are urging residents in the area to please take necessary precaution. Here are some suggestions:

· Keep rabies vaccinations up-to-date for your pet.

· Keep your cats indoors and keep your dogs on a leash when outside.

· Don't leave food or garbage outside that may attract wild animals.

· Stay away from wild animals and do not feed them.

Rabies is a viral disease of mammals transmitted in the saliva of an infected animal. It is transmitted when the infected animal bites another mammal. Rabies in humans is 100 percent preventable by vaccination. In the United States, the rabies virus is mostly spread by wild animals like raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. The rabies virus is endemic in Georgia.

SEE ALSO: Rabid Raccoon Killed By Dog In Downtown Douglasville

If you see wildlife or domesticated dogs and cats acting strangely, call Animal Control at 770-942-5961.

For further information, you can contact Douglas County Director of Communications and Community Relations Rick Martin at 770-920-7303 or Cobb & Douglas Public Health Director of Communications Valerie Crow at 770-514-3109 or email at Valerie.crow@dph.ga.gov.