Rabid skunks prowling El Paso County
To have a rabid skunk roaming the countryside is one thing. It will die in a few days, and probably not spread the disease very far.
To have one in a suburb or city is quite another.
That distinction is why the discovery of three rabid skunks in El Paso County for the first time in nearly 40 years is elevating an almost negligible public health threat into a potentially serious one.
Two years ago skunk rabies — a specific strain of the virus named for its primary carrier — appeared in Colorado for the first time in 30 years, but it was in rural areas across the eastern plains. It’s since moved steadily westward.
El Paso County’s cases appear to be the only ones in Colorado getting nearer to populated areas.
“It increases the risk of human exposure,” said John Pape, an epidemiologist at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. “They (skunks) come out from under the tool shed where they’ve been nesting and your kid finds them in the backyard.”
Add dogs, cats, livestock, raccoons and other suburban-savvy wildlife, and the spread can pick up speed.
One of El Paso County’s skunks was in or near Latigo Trails, a rural subdivision a few miles north of the Falcon/Peyton area, said Michael Seraphin, spokesman for the Colorado Division of Wildlife. The others were near the Douglas and Elbert County lines.
Traditionally the risk of rabies has been low in the state, limited to a few isolated cases, mostly from bats.
The last human rabies case in Colorado was in 1931, while the last time a dog acquired rabies in Colorado was in 1974.
Most dog bites, in fact, don’t warrant treatment, since dogs are unlikely to carry the disease. But that could soon change if rabies is circulating in the area.
Rabies attacks the central nervous system and is fatal, so people are sometimes treated when there’s any doubt about the circumstances of an animal bite. Treatment consists of a vaccine regimen that costs about $5,000, said Pape.
The DOW discovered the El Paso County skunks when residents called to report the animals’ bizarre behavior, Seraphin said. Skunks are nocturnal, so a tell-tale sign is one out during the day.
Health department officials urge people to vaccinate pets and to avoid feeding or touching wildlife.
The department also recommends people contact a veterinarian if a pet has been bitten or scratched by a wild animal.
And if you find a dead skunk on your property, dispose of it by using gloves or a shovel to lift the carcass, and double-bag it for the trash.
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Call Newsome at 636-0198. Visit the Pikes Peak Health blog at www.pikespeakhealth.freedomblogging.com and the Gazette’s Health page at Gazette.com/health
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