The word "rabies" grabs attention. It conjures images right out of a movie: a rabid dog in a convulsive fit with drool exiting the mouth. Not a pretty sight nor something to be taken lightly. But it is a problem that can be controlled if it is understood by the public and by the officials who have to deal with it.
     With a substantial increase in recently confirmed cases of rabies in New Brunswick, U.S. officials with the Maine Centers for Disease Control (MCDC), along with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Inspection Service (USDA APHIS), have decided now is the time to present information and step up activity in the areas of Calais and Presque Isle to thwart the spread over the border.
     With 23 confirmed cases of rabies in Charlotte County, the Canadian government has increased air drops of vaccine packets and surveillance activities to contain the outbreak. In Washington County, there have been six confirmed cases this year, all concentrated in the Calais area, and all raccoon variant rabies. This is a slight increase in the county over the past two years.
     A presentation titled Rabies in Washington County was recently hosted by the Washington County Council of Governments for area officials and town representatives at the Cobscook Community Learning Center in Trescott. Jesse Morris, a wildlife biologist with the USDA APHIS, and Tricia Bosse with the MCDC, were the presenters.
     Bosse, an epidemiologist who investigates patterns and causes of disease, told the audience, "Rabies is a disease that is primarily spread by contact with the saliva of an infected animal through a bite or scratch. It is fatal but 100% preventable. Animals of concern would be raccoons, skunks, fox and bats." She then highlighted current laws and steps to be taken in reporting a suspected rabies case, as well as the quarantine procedures, testing and subsequent vaccine treatment for both animals and humans. There has not been a human case of rabies in Maine since 1937, and the state in general is seeing a downward trend in animal cases: 20 confirmed cases this year to date, versus 27 for the same time period in 2014.
     With the significant case confirmations being seen in New Brunswick, both the U.S. and Canadian governments are working together to provide one another with expertise, surveillance assistance and information, and they have expanded the territories where air drops of the oral vaccine are being done. Morris confirmed, "Since 2014, efforts have been made to double the size of the current surveillance area, which has now been completed for Washington County. This has been done purely to contain the outbreak being seen in New Brunswick."
     This collaborative approach is needed given the fact that trapped and tagged raccoons that were trapped a second time were found to have traveled an average of 15 miles. This shows there could be significant movement of an infected animal. Morris noted that one raccoon that was trapped multiple times had covered a distance of 75 miles in one year.
What to do
     In addition to government collaboration, both Bosse and Morris agreed that the public needs to be informed on what to do if an animal is suspected of having rabies. If a wild animal is acting strange and showing signs or symptoms such as aggression, loss of fear of humans, excessive salivation, circling, lethargy or paralyzation -- or if roadkill is found or spotted -- the public is asked not to touch the animal, alive or dead, and to contact the local authorities or call USDA Wildlife Services at 1‑866‑487‑3297.
     Rabies is certainly dangerous, but it can be controlled and contained if the public is aware and if government channels are open and receptive to working together.