Orange County has received its fourth positive rabies test this year after a dog killed a skunk northwest of Chapel Hill.

Orange County Animal Services officials said in a release the incident occurred on Tuesday near Dairyland Road and Albert Road. A resident noticed her dog had encountered a skunk in the yard.

“The skunk chased the dog and was killed in a fight that ensued,” officials said.

The dog was current on its rabies vaccination and was able to receive a booster rabies vaccination. The booster must be delivered within four days of the encounter, according to state law. An unvaccinated dog, car or ferret that encounters a rabid animal must either be euthanized or quarantined for up to four to six months.

A communicable disease nurse from the Orange County Health Department also has been assigned to the case because the resident handled the dog after it came into contact with the rabid skunk.

Orange County received nine positive rabies cases last year and six in 2016.

Raccoons and bats are the host species for rabies in Orange County. Other animals, including skunks, can contract rabies through the spillover effect.

Orange County Animal Services is hosting a low-cost rabies vaccination clinic on Thursday, October 25, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Farmer’s Market on Margaret Lane in Hillsborough.

Related Stories
‹
Orange County Receives New Positive Rabies Test, 7th of 2020
Orange County has received its seventh positive rabies test of the year, according to the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health. The county’s Animal Services announced on Thursday that this incident involved a skunk and occurred in Cedar Grove. A resident found a dead skunk in an outdoor enclosure with their dog. Animal Control […]
Positive Rabies Test Reported on Raccoon in Carrboro, Orange County's 8th in 2024
Orange County Animal Services announced a positive rabies test for a raccoon in Carrboro on Tuesday morning. OCAS reports the case originated on Dec. 23 in an altercation involving the raccoon and a group of dogs outdoors near Lilac Drive. Animal services removed the raccoon for testing and discovered rabies. This is the third reported […]
Positive Rabies Test Reported on Fox in Carrboro
Orange County Animal Services has announced a positive rabies test on a fox in Carrboro. According to a release from OCAS, the incident involving the fox and a person occurred in the vicinity of Davie Road and Fidelity Street on September 2. The fox was then removed for rabies testing. This is the third positive […]
Positive Rabies Test Reported on Raccoon in Hillsborough
Orange County Animal Services announced a positive rabies test for a raccoon in Hillsborough on Wednesday afternoon. OCAS reports the case originated on Tuesday in an altercation involving the raccoon, a person and two dogs outdoors on Shirley Lane, near the intersection of Pleasant Green Road and St Marys Road. Animal services removed the raccoon […]
Orange County Reports First Rabies Case of 2024, Citing Raccoon in Chapel Hill
Orange County has received its first report of a positive case of rabies in 2024: a raccoon near Southern Village in Chapel Hill.
Rabid Skunk Marks Seventh Case in Orange County For 2023
Orange County Animal Services reported its second positive rabies case in the span of two weeks on Tuesday, this time from a skunk. A release from the department said the case stems from an incident on Friday, December 15 near Cole Mill Road and Umstead Road — which is close to the Orange County line […]
Orange County: Rabid Raccoon Reported in Chapel Hill
The second case of rabies in Orange County this calendar year happened in Chapel Hill on Thursday, according to the county government. A release from Orange County Animal Services on Friday alerted community members to the latest case, where a Chapel Hill resident saw a raccoon “behaving strangely near his home.” The person called Animal […]
Orange County Reports Third Rabies Case of 2021
Orange County Animal Services has reported its third rabies case of the year following an incident in Hillsborough. On December 5, a Hillsborough resident discovered a skunk in an outdoor enclosure with his dog. After unsuccessful attempts to scare the skunk away, he killed the skunk and called Animal Control. Animal Control arrived and removed […]
Bat Captured in Chapel Hill Tests Positive for Rabies, Orange County's First Case of 2021
Orange County has received its first positive rabies case of 2021 after Chapel Hill residents caught a bat in their home. The incident occurred on Saturday, March 20, when the residents discovered a bat flying around in their home. According to a report, they were able to secure the bat without any direct contact. Animal […]
2 More Rabid Skunks Reported to Orange County Animal Services
One day after receiving a positive rabies case from a skunk in Hillsborough, Orange County Animal Services received two more positive tests. The department shared a release on Friday saying two more skunks tested by the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health came back positive, with both also being from Hillsborough. The results bring […]
›