Alert: Positive skunk marks first local rabies case in 2024

The Davidson County Health Department has received lab results confirming the first positive rabies case in Davidson County in 2024. Reports provided to the health department indicate that a skunk was killed in an outdoor enclosure by a domestic dog. Animal Control was contacted by the homeowner for assistance in removing the skunk from the property. Due to the risk of the rabies virus, the skunk was sent to the State

Laboratory of Public Health for testing, and positive results were received the following day. Due to the high threat of the deadly rabies virus the domestic dog, who was unvaccinated, was euthanized. There was no human exposure reported. This incident occurred in Denton, near South Davidson High School.

Rabies is a vaccine preventable disease in humans, dogs, cats, and ferrets, but without the vaccine andpostexposure treatment, the virus is 99.9% fatal. North Carolina law requires that all domestic cats, dogs, and

ferrets receive the rabies vaccine by 4 months of age and be kept current. The Davidson County Animal Shelter provides low-cost rabies vaccines Monday – Friday, 11 am – 4 pm, and on Saturdays from 11 am – 2 pm. No appointment is necessary and vaccines cost $5 per animal.

For more information about rabies prevention visit: https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/prevention/index.html.