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8-5-05 |
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BAIT DROP MEDIA DAY SCHEDULED FOR TUESDAY A group of state and federal agencies will host an Oral Rabies Vaccination (ORV) media day at Raleigh County Airport, Tuesday, August 9, at 1 p.m. to kick off flight operations in West Virginia. The event is an opportunity for media representatives to interview experts on rabies and to examine the program's mobile headquarters, which contains full flight control and weather forecasting technologies. Federal safety regulations prohibit anyone but members of participating agencies from flying on the planes. However, in-flight b-roll and still photos are available from USDA upon request. "Given the expanding population of raccoons and the wide range of habitat in which they live, rabies has now become a threat to human and animal health," said West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Gus Douglass. "This program is making great strides in controlling this disease, and the participating agencies are to be commended for the hard work and cooperation exhibited by their employees who volunteer for this program." The program will distribute approximately 2.3 million small, vaccine-laden baits along a corridor stretching from the Northern Panhandle through the southern coalfields. The project will also distribute baits in parts of Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee and North Carolina. Nearly 15,000 square miles will be involved overall. This project is part of a national effort by local, state, and federal cooperators to eliminate rabies in raccoons. There are more confirmed cases of rabies in raccoons than any other animal. In 2003, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported 7,170 positive rabies cases and 2,635 (36.7 percent) were in raccoons. Skunks represented the second largest group of positive cases with 2,112 (29.4 percent). Wildlife in general represented 91 percent of all rabies cases in 2003. Costs associated with living with rabies are thought to exceed $300 million annually, and 20,000 to 40,000 people receive post-exposure treatment for rabies each year. Thirty counties are involved in August: Boone, Barbour, Braxton, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Fayette, Gilmer, Harrison, Kanawha, Lewis, Logan, Nicholas, Marion, McDowell, Mingo, Monongalia, Pleasants, Preston, Raleigh, Randolph, Ritchie, Roane, Taylor, Tucker, Tyler, Upshur, Webster, Wetzel and Wyoming. This is the fifth year for the program in West Virginia. Testing has indicated that a substantial percentage of raccoons have been inoculated against rabies. State agencies involved include the West Virginia Department of Agriculture, West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources and West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. Federal agencies include USDA-APHIS Wildlife Services and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). DHHR has been contracted by Wildlife Services to test raccoons to determine the "leading edge" of rabies' westward migration. Health departments in numerous counties have also been involved in surveillance activities. Wildlife Services has contracted the CDC for some testing as well. For more information regarding Oral Rabies Vaccination in West Virginia, contact USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services at 1-800-487-3297.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org. |
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©2001, 2002 West Virginia Department of Agriculture, All Rights Reserved |
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