Lewis County Public Health receives notice of Raccoon that tested positive for rabies

LOWVILLE- Lewis County Public Health has been notified by the New York State Department of Health Wadsworth Laboratory that a raccoon in the Town of Martinsburg has tested positive for rabies.

There was no human or domestic animal contact with the raccoon, public health officials clarified. “It is very important for people and their pets to avoid direct contact with wild animals, particularly if the animals are behaving abnormally, and ensure your pets are up to date with rabies vaccinations,” officials said in a released statement.

Lewis County Public Health reminds all residents and visitors alike that rabies is a very serious and deadly disease affecting the central nervous system.

It can be transmitted from infected animals to humans if they are exposed to the saliva or nervous tissue of a rabid animal through a bite or scratch.

It is also possible for a person to have contact with a bat and not know it while asleep, therefore all bats that are found in the room of a sleeping person or small child should be captured and tested for rabies.

Want to know how to safely capture a bat? Check out this video how-to from New York Department of Health.

NYS DEC Raccoon image.