OSWEGO, NY – Following the discovery of seven rabid skunks in the city of Watertown and recent cases of potential human exposure in St. Lawrence and Oswego counties, State Senator Patty Ritchie announced the addition of $875,000 in new funding in the Senate’s budget plan to fight and prevent the deadly disease.
The increase, coming on top of $50,000 in funding proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, would set a new record for rabies prevention budget funding.
“As we continue to see more and more rabies cases pop up across the state, especially in our region, it’s becoming increasingly important to invest in efforts that stop its spread,” said Senator Ritchie.
“We did see rabies activities earlier this year than in past years and attributed it to unusually warm winter that kept many wild animal active,” Jiancheng Huang, Oswego County Public Health Director, told Oswego County Today. “We’ve already had a fox in the town of Minetto test positive for rabies this year. That was just recently, about four or five weeks ago.”
The senator said she is pleased the Senate is once again making it a priority to protect public health “by combating this deadly disease.”
“From providing no-cost clinics that safeguard pets, to expanding programs that vaccinate wildlife, this funding would help us continue the work we’ve started to fight back against rabies and keep ourselves as well as our pets, safe,” Ritchie said.
With more than 2,300 cases reported statewide since 2010, rabies has been on the rise in New York State.
In that time period, there were more than 140 cases throughout Jefferson, Oswego and St. Lawrence counties, including 17 in 2015.
“Rabies is a problem for Oswego, as part of the nature of a rural community. People are at increased risk of being bitten by wild animals and live stock farmers are at increased risk of economic loss if their live stocks were exposed,” Huang said. “Most recently, about two weeks ago, a sheep was sacrificed for testing, but it turned out negative.”
In recent years, Senator Ritchie has successfully advocated for more than $2 million in increased funding to enhance rabies prevention efforts.
This support has made possible over two dozen no-cost rabies clinics in the region she represents, which have helped vaccinate more than 2,000 pets against the disease.
In addition, funds have also been used to expand an innovative rabies vaccine program organized by Cornell University, which utilizes low-flying planes to drop small packets, containing a vaccine, surrounded by a mixture of sugar, vegetable fat and other flavors, that are then consumed by animals, namely raccoons.
“To protect the health of the public, our staff works hard to combat the spread of rabies, Huang said.
For example, he pointed to the county’s rabies clinics. The pet vaccination clinics are held eight times a year.
The vast majority of rabies cases reported each year are wild animals such as raccoons, skunks, bats and foxes.
That is why immunizing pets is such an effective way to reduce the risk of human exposures to rabies, Huang explained.
The Oswego County Health Department’s series of eight rabies clinics will start March 30, at the County Highway Garage, 31 Schaad Drive, Scriba.
All clinics will be held on Wednesdays from 6 to 8 p.m.
Following Scriba will be:
– Pulaski: May 4, 6 to 8 p.m., County Highway Garage, 957 Centerville Road.
– West Monroe: June 1, 6 to 8 p.m., Town Highway Garage, 46 County Route 11.
– Hannibal: July 6, 6 to 8 p.m., Town Highway Garage, 68 Cemetery Drive.
“We also have an animal exposure prophylaxis program to investigate each reported animal exposure and to determine whether a post-exposure vaccination prophylaxis is warranted,” Huang said.
Any time a person or pet comes in contact with a sick or suspicious-acting animal, the incident should be reported to the county health department as soon as possible.
A bite or scratch on the skin should be washed immediately with soap and water.
A deadly disease caused by a virus that attacks the central nervous system, rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear.
While infected mammals can transmit rabies to humans and other animals, human cases of rabies are rare.
Under New York State law, dogs, cats and ferrets must receive rabies vaccinations to protect public health.
To reduce the risk of rabies in animals and humans, people should take the following steps:
– Make sure that dogs, cats and pet ferrets have current rabies vaccines. The rabies vaccination is the most effective way of protecting pets and humans from rabies.
– Do not feed pets outdoors.
– Never try to feed a wild animal.
– Do not approach or touch unfamiliar animals.
– Avoid any animal with symptoms of rabies.
– Block any openings into the home that an animal may get through.
– Keep tamper-proof lids on outside garbage cans so animals are not attracted to your property.
– Teach children basic rules about protecting themselves from strange and unfamiliar animals.
To report a possible exposure, or for more information about rabies, call the Oswego County Health Department weekdays at 349-3564 or 1-800-596-3200, ext. 3564.
In an emergency during evenings, weekends, or holidays, call the health department’s answering service at 341-0086.
For more information on rabies visit www.oswegocounty.com/health/rabies.pdf or www.cdc.gov/rabies.
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