Distemper outbreak in Abilene, several reports of sick raccoons in the area

Описание: There have been several reports of sick raccoons in Abilene recently.

KTXS spoke with a wildlife expert who told us that the disease that many raccoons have been coming in with this distemper.

“The city of Abilene, they have received about 40 calls recently," President of the Big Country Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, Bessie Hollar, said. "We have received about seven calls.”

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Distemper is a highly contagious and often fatal viral disease.

Hollar said the disease can easily spread to other animals, including pets.

“If a raccoon wants to drink out of the water dish or something on your porch, that can be transmitted to your dog if your dog has not been vaccinated recently,” she said.

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Hollar said if you leave food or water outside for animals, you should bring those dishes in when they are not being used to help prevent the spread of the virus.

She also told us that if you think your pet has been exposed to distemper, take them to a veterinarian as soon as possible.

“Hopefully your animal does have yearly vaccines," she said. "It should be vaccinated against any kind of distemper from a raccoon. But if they share the same water bowl, if they smell any droppings from the raccoon that can transmit the distemper virus, and they can catch it if they have not been vaccinated.”

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Hollar said there are several signs that can indicate a raccoon may be infected.

“With raccoons, it's lethargic," she said. "They're going to be very, very tired. They're not going to act normal. Typically when they see you that they're not going to run away. They're going to show no fear of humans. They're going to act, basically like they're confused and lost. They will stumble a lot. They will have discharge coming from their eyes and their nose. They can also have respiratory issues. And towards the end, they'll start having seizures.”

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Hollar told us there is a treatment for pets with this disease but there is no cure for distemper.

She said that if you encounter a raccoon that you suspect has distemper, do not mess with it.

“Don't try to handle the animal yourself," she said. "Don't try to raise it or heal or anything. Because distemper with raccoons is fatal.”

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She said the rehabilitation center quarantines suspected cases to prevent the virus from spreading to other animals.

“We usually take them in and I'll observe for a couple of days to make sure that it isn’t something else that's going on," Hollar said. "But once they start showing the classic symptoms of distemper, they will be euthanized. And so we keep them in quarantine so they do not infect any of the other animals that are in the rehab.”

If you see an animal that you think may be sick, make sure not to approach it or touch it. Instead, call animal control or a local wildlife rehabilitation center.

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