Howard County is in between two counties which are under rabies alerts.
Boone and Randolph County are both designated as under rabies alerts.
The discovery of a rabid bat in a Moberly home triggered the Randolph County Health Department to initiate a rabies alert notice for the county on Monday.
Boone County received notice from the Missouri Department of Health and Human Services of a rabies alert for the county on Aug. 14 after seven bats were found positive for rabies within the county.
So far, only one bat has tested positive for rabies in Randolph County. We just want people to know that rabies is here and to take precautions, Janet Murray, environmental health supervisor, told the Democrat-Leader. She recommends people make sure their pets are vaccinated and be aware that bats can get inside their homes.
DHHS places counties on rabies alert when there is a positive result on a domestic animal or when threshold levels for wild animals have been exceeded.
Whether a county is under a rabies alert, DHHS recommends citizens take the following steps to prevent the spread of rabies:
Avoid contact with wild animals and stray pets.
Make sure dogs and cats are vaccinated against rabies.
Keep pets under control; do not let them run loose.
Do not keep wild animals as pets.
Notify local law enforcement if an animal is suspected of rabies. In Howard County, call 248-3605.
Seek medical attention if bitten or otherwise injured by an animal.
Rabies is a viral disease of mammals and is transmitted primarily through bites. Rabies is found naturally in Missouri, occurring primarily in bats and skunks. The annual number of rabid animals reported in Missouri from 1997 through 2007 ranged from 31 to 73.
Although rabies is transmitted to humans almost entirely through bites from rabid animals, contamination of open wounds or mucous membranes with saliva or nervous tissue from a rabid animal could potentially constitute an exposure. Rabies in humans is almost invariably fatal. Fortunately, human deaths in the United States have become relatively rare because: (1) effective vaccinations have been available for dogs and cats since the 1950s, (2) public health practices such as animal quarantine and testing are aggressively pursued, and (3) improved anti-rabies shots have been developed for persons exposed to rabies. The last human rabies fatality in Missouri was reported in 1959, although many Missourians receive the anti-rabies series of shots each year.
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