Orange County has received its ninth positive rabies test of 2017.

The confirmation from the North Carolina State Laboratory of Public Health originated when a Hurdle Mills resident found a deceased raccoon in her back yard along with her two dogs on Friday, December 22. Officials say that one of the resident’s dogs was up to date on rabies vaccinations and will only require a booster shot. The second dog did not have a rabies vaccination history, according to a release, but the owner is planning to quarantine the dog for four months.

State law requires unvaccinated dogs, cats and ferrets that come into contact with a rabid animal to be quarantined or euthanized.

A communicable disease nurse from the Orange County Health Department is also in contact with the residents because they may have experienced possible secondary exposure when handling their dogs.

Raccoons and bats are the dominant host species for rabies in North Carolina but dogs, cats, groundhougs and skunks are also susceptible to contracting rabies.

Orange County recorded six positive rabies cases in 2016 and 10 in 2015. Both of those totals were down dramatically from a spike of 23 confirmed cases in 2014.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Related Stories
‹
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 Animal Services to Hold First Rabies Vaccination Clinic of 2022
A popular service by the Orange County Animal Services is back again for 2022: low-cost rabies vaccinations for pets. The department is set to host its first clinic of the year on Saturday, February 26, at the Eubanks Road park and ride lot in Chapel Hill. The drive-thru style clinic, which is set to last […]
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 […]
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 […]
Orange County: Third Positive Case of Rabies in 2020 Confirmed
Orange County Animal Services received its third positive case of rabies on Thursday, according to a release from the department. The case originated on Tuesday in the vicinity of Walnut Grove Church Road and NC-86 in Hillsborough. A resident discovered her dog had killed a skunk in its outdoor enclosure before calling Animal Control. The […]
›