Happy New Year!!

With the change in the year, there is a new law coming into effect for the state of Washington.  As of January 1, 2012, state law requires that all dogs, cats and ferrets be rabies vaccinated.  While most people already do this and many cities and counties require rabies vaccines, there were a few animals slipping through the cracks.
Here are some facts about rabies from the Washington Department of Health:
How common is human rabies and what is the source of the rabies virus?
      Human rabies is an extremely rare disease in this country. Since 1990 the number of reported cases in the United States has ranged from 1 to 7 cases annually. Almost all human rabies cases acquired in the United States since 1980 have been due to bat rabies virus. When human rabies occurs due to exposure outside of the United States it is usually the result of the bite of a rabid dog.
Has human rabies occurred recently in Washington?
      There have been two cases of human rabies identified in Washington during the last 20 years. In 1995, a four year old child died of rabies four weeks after a bat was found in her bedroom and in 1997, a 64 year old man was diagnosed with rabies.  These two Washington residents were infected with bat rabies virus.

Has rabies occurred recently in domestic animals Washington?

       During the last 20 years, several domestic animals have been diagnosed with rabies. In 2002, a rabid cat was identified in Walla Walla County with bat rabies. The last suspected rabid dog was identified in Pierce County in 1987.  In 1992, a horse in Benton County died of rabies and in 1994, a llama in King County died after becoming infected with a bat rabies virus.