05/10/2024
**REGARDING THE LOCAL RACCOON POPULATION ISSUES**
Hello Neighborhood!
We have been seeing a lot of social media posts recently about the local racoon population. Many people have spotted racoons behaving abnormally, as if ill or injured. Last week we were contacted about such an animal, and because we have staff who are rabies vaccinated, and we have experience handing wildlife, we felt equipped to take this situation in hand.
We tested this animal for both rabies and distemper, and we have received results today. The animal that was tested was NEGATIVE for rabies, but it was POSITIVE for distemper. Distemper is a typically fatal communicable disease that afflicts racoons, and it's noteworthy because this is the same disease that affects dogs. Local canines are are currently AT RISK for contracting this disease, so be sure your dogs are up-to-date on their DHPP vaccine.
Please note, we are sharing this test result for public awareness, but you should absolutely not approach any raccoons that are acting as if they are unhealthy, or if they are acting aggressively. A normal behaviour for a raccoon is to run away from people when it sees us, so if they aren't doing that, keep your distance. This test was done on a single animal, which means any other animal could be carrying rabies. Rabies is far more common in wildlife than most people realize, and we have even had multiple staff members have to be treated for rabies after confirmed exposure. Rabies is out there. It is not worth risking your life, or your pet's life, to try to handle a sick raccoon, so if you encounter one, contact the local animal services department to deal with it.
