Another person treated for rabies exposure after being bitten by a bat on Cal Poly Humboldt campus; Public health officials urge residents to avoid contact with wild creatures | Lost Coast Outpost
Graphic: Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services.
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PREVIOUSLY: Three children treated for rabies exposure after handling positive bats, according to Humboldt County Public Health
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From the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services Facebook page:
Humboldt County public health officials continue to remind community residents not to touch bats following another incident in which a person was bitten by a bat they handled on the Cal Poly Humboldt campus and later tested positive for rabies. This brings to four the number of local people who have required treatment in the past two months after touching bats which later tested positive for rabies.
Between January and September 15 of this year, Humboldt County had five positive tests for the rabies virus in five bats and one skunk, according to the California Department of Public Health, and earlier this month the Center for Disease Control and Prevention issued a warning about a “nationwide increase in reported human exposures to rabies: administration of post-exposure rabies prophylaxis.”
Preventative measures include avoiding contact with wild and stray animals, bringing pet food indoors at night, reporting animal bites to your county or municipal animal control officer, and, if bitten, immediately washing the bite with soap and water and seeking medical attention. Public health officials emphasize the importance of fully vaccinating pets against rabies, including dogs, cats and some livestock.
For questions about rabies or to report a rabid animal, please call the DHHS Environmental Health Division at 707-445-6215 or toll-free at 1-800-963-9241.
Gn Health
