Highland County Health Department<br> Hillsboro, Ohio

The Highland County Health Department Environmental Health Division is responsible for rabies control by investigating biting incidents involving warm blooded animals in Highland County. This is accomplished through coordination between local health practitioners, veterinarians, and surrounding health departments. If you have been recently bitten by an animal, be sure that the health department has been notified of the incident so that an investigation can be done.

Despite what many people think, the health department will not confiscate any animals involved in an investigation. Instead, animals are placed in quarantine for 10 days. This means that animals must be kept contained (in house, on leash, or in kennel) and not permitted to run free. The animal in question is inspected by a HCHD employee at the beginning and end of the quarantine period. If the animal is still healthy at the end of the 10 days, and is current on the necessary vaccinations, the owner may release the animal, and rabies is not considered a concern.

General Rabies Information

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the central nervous system in infected animals. The disease is passed from animal to man, and is nearly always fatal to infected humans. In the US, very few human cases are reported every year.

Any warm blooded animal can potentially carry rabies, but the disease is far more common in raccoons, bats, skunks, and foxes. Domestic animals, particularly free roaming animals, are also at a higher risk for rabies because they are more likely to come into contact with wild animals.

Rabies is spread through saliva and nervous tissue from infected animals through bites and scratches, There have been a few uncommon cases of rabies transfer from infected humans to other humans through corneal and other organ transplants.

There is currently no cure for the Rabies virus. If treatment begins in time, however, even patients known to be exposed can be treated to prevent rabies infection. For this reason, the health department is active in investigating animals that have bitten humans.

In Highland County Ohio, bats present the greatest risk for rabies exposure. If a child is found unattended in a room with a bat, or if a bat is found in a room with a sleeping person, that individual should contact their family physician for guidance.

For more information regarding Rabies, contact the Highland County Health Department, Environmental Health Division.