Rabies vaccine to be placed in bait in Harford County to immunize wild animals

The rabies vaccine is to be placed in a bait mixture throughout Harford County to attract wild animals in an effort to immunize them against the illness.

The pilot project, known as the Oral Rabies Vaccination Program (ORV), will place over 15,000 bait containers across the county, the Harford County Health Department announced Monday in a statement. The main animals targeted are raccoons.

The vaccine to be used, called Raboral V-RG, is a live virus vaccine. But health officials say it cannot cause rabies and is not harmful to raccoons, pets, or other animals. 

The same vaccine has been used successfully in Anne Arundel County, Maryland since 1998, as well as in other states in an effort to control rabies in raccoons, the health department statement said. 

Vaccine not considered harmful to most humans

While the vaccine is considered low risk to human health, it is advised that the bait should not be handled by anyone under 18 years old, or someone pregnant, immunocompromised, or who has a chronic skin condition.  

Officials said the bait containers are made of fishmeal and polymers and come in two forms. One is a small brown brick containing a packet of liquid rabies vaccine, while the other is a condiment-style packet coated with a waxy fishmeal attractant. 

A raccoon must bite into the packet to be vaccinated. Ground teams in marked state vehicles will distribute the bait packets in likely raccoon habitats throughout Harford County parks and neighborhoods.

"We are committed to keeping our community healthy, and the launch of this program marks an important step forward in preventing the spread of rabies and keeping Harford County residents and animals safe," said Harford County Health Officer Lauren Levy.  

Rabies is spread by the bite or scratch of an infected animal, such as a raccoon, groundhog, cat, fox, skunk or bat. It is also spread when an infected animal's saliva comes in contact with the eyes, nose, mouth or open cut of a person or another animal.