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By NMDOH
The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) and the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish are reporting the confirmation on March 13th of a third rabid fox in the northwest region of San Miguel County. This is the third rabid fox in the county so far in 2019.
The animal was found on a recreation trail and an alert was sent to the Department of Game and Fish officials who collected the specimen. The fox was in close proximity to the other two cases confirmed this year. Both Departments are working closely with the San Miguel County Sheriff’s Office to actively monitor the area.
Rabies is a deadly viral disease that can be prevented but not cured. Avoiding contact with wild animals will protect your family, pets, livestock and the ecosystem by allowing healthy wildlife to maintain a safe distance away from people and reduce or eliminate the chance of a bite from a rabid animal.
You can actively participate in helping your community by ensuring your pets are up to date on their rabies vaccinations, keeping them under observation when outdoors, avoiding leaving any pet food or scraps outside, keeping your outdoor garbage cans tightly sealed, maintaining a situational awareness for any abnormally acting animals in your area and alerting the resources listed below if you see any abnormally acting wildlife.
“Any physical contact with wild mammals should be immediately reported to the Department of Health and the Department of Game and Fish” said the Secretary of the New Mexico Department of Health, Kathy Kunkel. The public should call their local Department of Game and Fish office or the dispatch at (505) 827-9376 for assistance with wildlife acting oddly, especially foxes, coyotes, skunks, raccoons, and bats. The public should immediately call the New Mexico Department of Health at (505) 827-0006 if they or their pets are bitten or otherwise exposed to the saliva of wild animals
The following guidelines can help protect you and your family from rabies:
- Stay away from wild or unfamiliar animals. This includes animals who are acting sick, fearless, aggressive or friendly.
- Do not attempt to feed, approach, or touch wild animals (alive or dead). Teach this important message to your children.
- Keep pets on a leash and under observation when outdoors.
- Pets should be up-to-date on rabies vaccinations and wearing current license tags on their collars.
- If your cat or dog has been bitten or scratched, call your pet’s veterinarian, even if the wound is superficial.
- Horses and other livestock should be considered for rabies vaccination to protect them from rabid animals that may attack them.
- If you or a loved-one are bitten by an animal, or come into contact with an animal’s saliva, wash the exposed site immediately with soap and water for 10-15 minutes and seek medical care. If you sustain a bite from an encounter with a dog, cat or other domestic animal, report the bite immediately to local animal control or your County Sheriff’s office and seek medical care. Call the New Mexico Department of Health (24/7) at 505-827-0006 for recommendations about receiving rabies exposure protective vaccination.
- If you see a sick or deceased wild animal, or a wild animal acting abnormally in this area, report it to New Mexico Department of Game and Fish 505-476-8000, and after hours at 505-827-9376.
For more information about rabies call the NMDOH Epidemiology and Response Division hotline at 505-827-0006 or visit the rabies section of the NMDOH website at https://nmhealth.org/about/erd/ideb/zdp/rab.
