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Rabid raccoon bites dog
3/22/2008 10:30 PM   0 comments on this story E-mail this story to a friend


By BILL BENGTSON
North Augusta bureau
NORTH AUGUSTA -- A raccoon and dog were killed in the wake of a fight on Dove Court Wednesday morning. The raccoon was confirmed as rabid. The dog was bitten and not up to date on its rabies vaccinations.
Local resident Faith Bafford's two dogs -- a Jack Russell named Maggie and a Chihuahua named Puppy -- had treed a raccoon in the family's yard Tuesday night, said Bafford's husband, Ken.
Things were quiet overnight, but trouble started again Wednesday shortly after 8 a.m. Ken found that Maggie had gone under the deck to drag the raccoon back out again. He noted that the raccoon, despite being about twice the dog's size, definitely got the worst of things. He described the racoon as looking "almost dead," but it had managed to bite the dog in the face a couple of times.
Mike Strauss, North Augusta's animal-control officer, responded to the situation, along with officers from the North Augusta Dept. of Public Safety. The raccoon was dispatched on the spot with a handgun. A check of the raccoon's remains by the S.C. Dept. of Health and Environmental Control was positive for rabies, Strauss noted.
"The Jack Russell actually had won the fight," Strauss said, "but the raccoon, when we got there, was not killed... It had injuries to the dorsal region of the neck, and we were going to move the raccoon to a safer location to euthanize it. When we moved it, it was pretty obvious it was suffering, so I was with Officer (Kevin) Hayes, and he euthanized it there, in the back yard."
DHEC's indication of rabies came Thursday afternoon. The dog Maggie was euthanized a few hours later.
Strauss noted that rabies vaccinations are available with either a one- or three-year duration. DHEC will be offering several rabies clinics offering a one-year shot in Aiken County in the weeks ahead, in conjunction with local veterinarians and Aiken County Environmental Health. Dates are April 5,12, 19 and 26 and May 3 Sites are Family Pet Practice in Aiken, the New Holland Fire Department, Jackson Town Hall and Langley Community Center.
Strauss said he distributed literature about rabies control to some of the households in the area where the raccoon was found to spread information about the disease and how to minimize related risk.
The most common wild carriers of rabies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are raccoons, skunks, bats, foxes and coyotes. The most common domestic carriers are cats, cattle and dogs. All mammals are susceptible. Information on upcoming local rabies clinics is available at www.scdhec.gov.



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