Rabies is considered a “100% fatal” disease for many mammals, including foxes, skunks, raccoons, and woodchucks. So how exactly do you stop the spread of rabies among these animals?
In some areas, the answer is using aircraft.
Numerous health officials are deploying green packets the size of a quarter in rural areas throughout the U.S. One such area is in Western New York, where officials will spend the next few weeks using helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft to drop the vaccine bait in rural areas.
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Officials in Ohio have also employed a similar strategy this summer. Texas conducts its vaccination campaigns in the winter.
“This effort created a barrier of immune animals that reduced animal cases and prevented the spread of raccoon rabies into the rest of Ohio. The vaccine-laden baits are dropped by fixed-wing aircraft in rural areas and by low-flying helicopters and ground vehicles in urban and suburban neighborhoods,” Ohio’s Department of Health said.
The effort is part of the National Rabies Management Program, which is employed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In urban areas, baits are generally spread by hand.
Do citizens need to avoid vaccine packets?
Officials in New York said that most packets are consumed within four days, and almost all are consumed within a week. They say unused packets generally dissolve and the vaccine becomes inactivated once exposed.
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If a person must move a packet, officials say to use gloves and a plastic bag to pick it up. Place damaged baits in the trash, throw intact baits into wooded areas, and immediately wash your hands.
In areas where vaccines are being dropped, officials recommend that children be supervised while outside and confine dogs and cats indoors or use leashes for a week. Officials stress, however, that baits are generally safe for humans and pets. They say that if a child touches a broken bait to call 1-877-RABORAL for additional instructions.
“The vaccine in these baits cannot cause rabies and has been shown to be safe in more than 60 different species of animals, including cats and dogs,” the USDA said.
