Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, July 26, 1994 TAG: 9407260072
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Rabies continues to spread across the state at an alarming rate, with the number of rabid cats more than doubling since this time last year. Although the disease is spread predominantly by raccoons, health officials fear domestic animals - because they have frequent human contact - could bring the fatal disease closer to home.
"Cats need to be vaccinated as much or more than dogs," said Dr. Suzanne Jenkins, an assistant state epidemiologist.
Rabies rarely appeared in cats until an outbreak hit the raccoon population in Northern Virginia in the late 1970s, Jenkins said. The rabid raccoons bit domestic cats - and wild animals, such as skunks - causing the disease to spread across the rest of the state.
The percentage of Virginia cities and counties reporting rabies cases rose from 2.5 percent in 1980 to 75.9 percent in 1993, according to statistics kept by the Virginia Department of Health. Twenty-two dogs have tested positive for the disease since the outbreak began in 1977, compared with 135 cats. There have been 11 rabid cats reported statewide this year.
The number of rabies cases has doubled already in Bedford County this year, from three to six animals. However, it appears to be going down in the rest of the Roanoke Valley and in the New River Valley.
That doesn't mean the disease is not out there, local health officials say. It means only that the rabid animals haven't come into contact with the public.
"We feel certain that the virus is still present," said Bill Shires, environmental health manager at the Roanoke Health Department.
Roanoke reported three cases of rabies in 1993 - including one cat - and two cases the year before. For 20 years before that, there were no cases reported.
Roanoke County has likewise reported no positive cases this year, but Environmental Health Supervisor Dick Tabb thinks he may have found his first one.
A fox was found running with a farmer's livestock during daylight Monday, he said. One symptom of the virus is unusual behavior, such as a nocturnal animal making daylight appearances. Other symptoms include staggering, neurological problems, and foaming at the mouth.
"I wouldn't be surprised at all if it ended up being positive," Tabb said of the fox.
To find out, animal control officers must cut off the animal's head and send it to a state lab for testing. Domestic animals suspected of being rabid can be held in isolation for 10 days so that they don't have to be killed. If the animal lives for 10 days, it's not rabid.
Because rabies, if not treated, is 100 percent fatal to people and animals, health officials recommend that people who come into contact with the virus begin a series of vaccination shots as soon as possible. The shots - which cost from $1,200 to $2,500 - can prevent onset of the disease. As for those cute little stray cats and dogs that need a home, the Health Department offers this advice: Don't touch them. Call your local animal control officer, instead.
by CNB