Warning issued after rabid raccoon is found

EAST BRUNSWICK - Residents are again being warned to avoid contact with wild animals and stray pets, as another rabid animal has been found in southern Middlesex County.

On Saturday afternoon, a raccoon tested positive for rabies after being found in the vicinity of Vanderwater Court, off Hardenburg Lane. A resident noticed the raccoon's unusual behavior and called the police, who responded along with the township's animal control officer and seized the animal for testing, according to John Down, spokesman for the Middlesex County Public Health Department.

Dowd said there was no indication that any humans or animals had been exposed to the raccoon.

The county has reported more than a dozen rabid animals in the area since last spring. While some towns, including Monroe, have had one instance, two rabid skunks were found in Old Bridge. The skunks were seized in May and July, one in a residential yard off Marlboro Road, the other near Texas Road.

This was also the second case for East Brunswick, where a rabid skunk was found this summer.

County Health Director David A. Papi acknowledged the increase in cases this year.

"Rabies is endemic in New Jersey and Middlesex County. Incidents of rabies usually fluctuate from year to year," he said. "There has been an increase of rabies cases in animals within the county for 2006, and the ... department is closely monitoring the situation."

The public, he said, should take necessary precautions to protect themselves from rabies exposure. These precautions are to:

+ Immediately report a bite from a wild or domestic animal to your local Health Department.

+ Immediately report any wild animal showing signs of unusual behavior.

+ Be sure that all family pets are up-to-date on their rabies vaccination.

+ Animal-proof your home and yard.

+ Do not feed or handle wild animals.

+ Avoid contact with stray animals or pets other than your own.

+ Try to prevent your pets from coming into contact with wild animals.

+ Screen off vents to attics and other areas that could provide shelter for bats.

Rabies is caused by a virus that can infect all warm-blooded mammals, including man. The rabies virus is found in the saliva of a rabid animal and is transmitted by a bite or possibly by contamination of an open cut. New Jersey is enzootic for raccoon and bat variants of rabies. Bats, raccoons, skunks, groundhogs, foxes, cats and dogs represent about 95 percent of animals diagnosed with rabies in the United States.