OSWEGO COUNTY – Three unvaccinated dogs were exposed to rabies in Oswego County in separate incidents over the past week, the Oswego County Health Department reported today (Sept. 15).
In Richland, two unvaccinated dogs were exposed to rabies during an encounter with a raccoon.
A third dog was exposed in the town of Albion through a rabid skunk.
Another rabid skunk was confirmed in city of Oswego but there were no known exposures to rabies from the skunk.
New York State law requires that all cats, dogs, and ferrets be vaccinated against rabies.
The first rabies vaccine should be given at three months of age.
Unvaccinated dogs, cats and ferrets that are exposed to rabies must be placed in quarantine for six months or be euthanized.
“Under New York State law, any dog over four months of age is required to be licensed in the local municipality. To obtain the license, the dog must be up-to-date with its rabies vaccine,” said Jiancheng Huang, Public Health Director. “Recently, a 5-year-old dog was euthanized after being attacked by a rabid wild animal. The county health department offers rabies clinics for dogs, cats and ferrets at locations around Oswego County. The last rabies clinic of this year will be Nov. 1 at the county highway garage in Scriba. We encourage county residents to take the advantage of this clinic.”
The rabies clinic will take place from 6 to 8 p.m.
Any time a person or pet comes in physical 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.
The health department’s staff is available around-the-clock to respond to incidents involving possible rabies exposure by calling 315-349-3564 on weekdays, or by calling the department’s answering service at 315-341-0086 evenings, weekends and holidays.
People can help prevent the spread of rabies by following these reminders:
– 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.
For more information visit www.oswegocounty.com/health/rabies.pdf or facebook.com/Oswegocountyhealth/
Discover more from Oswego County Today
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
The penalty for harboring an unvaccinated pet should be severe enough to motivate delinquent individuals to comply. Quarantine
or euthanasia should be coupled with a large monetary fine and/or jail time.
There is a definite escalation of skunks in the city when school gets back in session. The students often don’t cover their trash cans, high school and elementary leave food remains on sidewalks and lawns, and many land owners never pick this up. This attracts vermin. Many, many college housing have secure trash cans, but a few do not.
Years ago they found that most roadkill would be preventable if people didn’t litter … it’s sort of that here, too. Rabies is a serious medical condition that can disable the individual, or even kill them. This isn’t a laughing matter, although most of at least the Westside has called ourselves skunk central!
The new trash cans supplied by the major hauler for Oswego should help, IF PEOPLE USE THEM.
We’ve been skunked many times in the last 15 years including one finding their way in through a unknown broken basement window and then having the scent circulate throughout the house via the heating system. NOT PRETTY on a New Years Eve night at 10 below!!!
Just sayin’!!!