A New Hampshire man has been hospitalized with symptoms consistent with rabies after being bitten by his pet raccoon, leading Fish and Game to remind people to stay away from wild animals because of the danger of the deadly disease.
Rabies is almost always fatal in humans but it is extremely rare for people to be diagnosed with it these days because of decades of public health practices, including mandatory rabies vaccines for dogs. Only a few people get rabies in the U.S. each year and none have been reported in New Hampshire since a suspected case in 2007 involving a roofer who may have been bitten by a bat while working.
It is difficult to be certain if somebody has rabies; definitive diagnosis often requires examining brain tissue after death. Early symptoms of the disease are similar to the flu while the well-known symptoms of hydrophobia – aversion to water – and excessive salivation or foaming at the mouth occur when the disease is well established and very difficult to treat.
Raccoons are a common carrier of the rabies virus, along with coyotes, foxes, skunks and bats.
“Rabies is spread from animal to animal or animal to human through saliva, generally through biting or scratching,” stated Andy Timmins, Wildlife Program Supervisor of Fish and Game’s Wildlife Division, in a press release. “The most effective way to avoid the virus is to not come into contact with wild animals, especially ones that are acting strangely, such as being aggressive, docile, acting sleepy, or walking unsteadily.”
It is illegal in New Hampshire to keep wildlife as pets or remove them from their habitat for any purpose. The Fish and Game Department “reminds residents and visitors that wild animals should be left alone (due to) the potential for the transfer of rabies or other animal diseases.”
Return to the Concord Monitor