State public health officials say rabies is spreading rapidly in skunks, with the infectious disease moving quickly from populations on the Eastern Plains toward the Front Range.
The state health department said health and wildlife experts aren’t sure why skunk rabies is spreading so quickly in Colorado.
Officials said skunks usually travel within only a half-mile radius. They believe that people may be trapping and relocating the skunks, which is illegal under Colorado Division of Wildlife regulations.
So far this year, 99 animals have tested positive for rabies, including 34 skunks and 54 bats. In addition, seven foxes, one domestic cat, one horse, one mule deer and one muskrat have tested positive for the virus, which affects the nervous system of humans and other mammals, said state officials.
In 2009, 103 animals tested positive for rabies in Colorado, which broke the state’s annual record of 70 cases in 2006, all of which were bats.
“This is a good time to remind people to keep their pets’ rabies vaccinations up to date and take a few simple precautions to avoid pets coming in contact with wildlife,” Elisabeth Lawaczek, state health veterinarian, said in a news release.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com
Signs of rabies
The rabies virus is found in the saliva of infected animals. People and animals get rabies from the bite of a rabid animal or direct contact with saliva from such an animal.
Signs of rabies in animals include abnormal behavior such as nocturnal animals being active during the day, wild animals approaching humans or other animals, difficulty walking or moving, and unusual animal sounds such as excessive bellowing in cattle or hissing and chirping in bats.
Some animals with rabies can be very aggressive, while others may appear almost catatonic.
If a wild animal allows a person to approach and handle it, the animal is probably ill or injured and may bite in self-defense.
