Positive rabies case confirmed in raccoon in western New Brunswick

A pair of raccoons are seen on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020 in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

A positive case of rabies has been confirmed in a raccoon in western New Brunswick.

The New Brunswick government says in a news release that the case was confirmed by the Department of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries in the Upper Kent, N.B., area, between Florenceville-Bristol and Perth-Andover. 

The province says Public Health can provide treatment for anyone who’s at risk of being exposed to the virus after coming in contact with a rabid animal.

However, health officials don’t consider this case to be a threat to the general public.

The province says oral rabies vaccine baits will be distributed where raccoons and skunks may find them – an extension of the rabies prevention and control measures conducted in western New Brunswick each summer.

Some live traps will also be set to help monitor the population.

"The vaccine baits pose little risk to humans or domestic animals. Any vaccine bait found should be left alone," says the province.

New Brunswickers are urged to take steps to protect themselves, their families, pets and any livestock from rabies by:

• keeping a safe distance from wildlife
• not adopting wildlife as pets
• not interfering with wild animals that appear abandoned
• not moving or relocating wildlife

The province warns that a rabid animal may not show signs or symptoms right away.

Residents are being urged to keep up-to-date on their pets’ vaccinations and to seek medical attention if they are bitten or scratched by an animal that could potentially be rabid.

Anyone who witnesses a raccoon, skunk or fox that appears to be sick should report it to Tele-Care at 811.

More information on rabies, including a surveillance map of confirmed cases in New Brunswick, can be found online.