Post by L Roebuck on Jul 21, 2006 14:52:54 GMT -5
Second rabid bat found in area
Crook County woman knew not to touch it
By Barney Lerten, KTVZ.com
A rabid bat has been found in Crook County, the second discovered in Central Oregon in recent days and the third in Oregon this month, health officials said Friday.
Last Sunday, a woman found a bat sitting on her porch in a subdivision near Prineville during the hot afternoon, the Crook County Health Department's communicable disease coordinator, Karen Yeargain, said.
"Checking again a few minutes later, the bat was still there and began hissing at her," Yeargain said. "Knowing that bats should not be out during the day, nor should they act aggressively, the woman covered the bat with a garbage can lid - without touching it - and called the sheriff's department.
The bat was submitted for testing by health officials and was found to be positive for rabies.
On July 8, a bat that tested positive for rabies was found at Bend's Pioneer Park. Health officials issued an advisory after hearing a woman and child reportedly touched the animal, but a woman contacted health officials to say they are alright.
Also in Crook County recently, two children were found to be carrying a live bat they had found during the day. The adults in attendance knew bats can carry germs but were not aware of rabies specifically, so they removed the bat and disposed of it, Yeargain said.
Since the children had prolonged, direct contact with a bat that was unavailable for testing, they are undergoing preventative treatment, the health official said. That still involves a series of shots - at least six - but not the painful ones of the past, Yeargain told NewsChannel 21. "They're no more painful than other vaccines you get," she said.
So far this year, five bats tested in Oregon were found to be positive for rabies, three this month alone.
Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system of humans and other mammals. It is almost 100 percent fatal, once symptoms begin.
Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system of humans and other mammals, according to the Centers for Disease Control (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/rabies/bats_&_rabies/bats&.htm). People get rabies from the bite of an animal with rabies (a rabid animal).
Any wild mammal, like a raccoon, skunk, fox, coyote, or bat, can have rabies and transmit it to people. It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or a wound.
Because rabies is a fatal disease, the goal of public health is, first, to prevent human exposure to rabies by education and, second, to prevent the disease by anti-rabies treatment if exposure occurs. Tens of thousands of people are successfully treated each year after being bitten by an animal that may have rabies. A few people die of rabies each year in the United States, usually because they do not recognize the risk of rabies from the bite of a wild animal and do not seek medical advice.
Most of the recent human rabies cases in the United States have been caused by rabies virus from bats. Awareness of the facts about bats and rabies can help people protect themselves, their families, and their pets.
Full Article: www.ktvz.com/story.cfm?nav=news&storyID=15589
Crook County woman knew not to touch it
By Barney Lerten, KTVZ.com
A rabid bat has been found in Crook County, the second discovered in Central Oregon in recent days and the third in Oregon this month, health officials said Friday.
Last Sunday, a woman found a bat sitting on her porch in a subdivision near Prineville during the hot afternoon, the Crook County Health Department's communicable disease coordinator, Karen Yeargain, said.
"Checking again a few minutes later, the bat was still there and began hissing at her," Yeargain said. "Knowing that bats should not be out during the day, nor should they act aggressively, the woman covered the bat with a garbage can lid - without touching it - and called the sheriff's department.
The bat was submitted for testing by health officials and was found to be positive for rabies.
On July 8, a bat that tested positive for rabies was found at Bend's Pioneer Park. Health officials issued an advisory after hearing a woman and child reportedly touched the animal, but a woman contacted health officials to say they are alright.
Also in Crook County recently, two children were found to be carrying a live bat they had found during the day. The adults in attendance knew bats can carry germs but were not aware of rabies specifically, so they removed the bat and disposed of it, Yeargain said.
Since the children had prolonged, direct contact with a bat that was unavailable for testing, they are undergoing preventative treatment, the health official said. That still involves a series of shots - at least six - but not the painful ones of the past, Yeargain told NewsChannel 21. "They're no more painful than other vaccines you get," she said.
So far this year, five bats tested in Oregon were found to be positive for rabies, three this month alone.
Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system of humans and other mammals. It is almost 100 percent fatal, once symptoms begin.
Rabies is an infectious viral disease that affects the nervous system of humans and other mammals, according to the Centers for Disease Control (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/rabies/bats_&_rabies/bats&.htm). People get rabies from the bite of an animal with rabies (a rabid animal).
Any wild mammal, like a raccoon, skunk, fox, coyote, or bat, can have rabies and transmit it to people. It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or a wound.
Because rabies is a fatal disease, the goal of public health is, first, to prevent human exposure to rabies by education and, second, to prevent the disease by anti-rabies treatment if exposure occurs. Tens of thousands of people are successfully treated each year after being bitten by an animal that may have rabies. A few people die of rabies each year in the United States, usually because they do not recognize the risk of rabies from the bite of a wild animal and do not seek medical advice.
Most of the recent human rabies cases in the United States have been caused by rabies virus from bats. Awareness of the facts about bats and rabies can help people protect themselves, their families, and their pets.
Full Article: www.ktvz.com/story.cfm?nav=news&storyID=15589