GROVE CITY — Rabid raccoons were apprehended near Wolf Creek on Grove City College property, according to a Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture report.

"Over the past year, raccoons have become a problem along Wolf Creek near Pine Street in Grove City," the department said in the June 19 news release. "Efforts are being made to control this raccoon population."

Karen Martin, veterinarian medical field officer for the PADA, oversees a 10-county region that includes Mercer County. "Last fall, they called and asked my advice to help with a raccoon problem," Martin said. "Raccoons are quite a terrible problem everywhere. They can cause a mess."

GCC was experiencing more raccoons in the garbage than usual, added Nichole Bucher, spokesperson for PADA. No humans were harmed by the raccoons.

Wes Osborne, a nuisance wildlife control operator licensed with the Pennsylvania Game Commission, was contracted by the college and, since winter, has been trapping them, Martin said.

"Earlier in the spring, one of our maintenance people saw a raccoon acting strangely," said Melinda Miller, head of public relations at GCC.

The raccoon was near the soccer field near Wolf Creek/Pine Street, and in late April another suspicious raccoon was spotted on campus, Miller added.

"(Osborne) was pretty skilled and familiar with the signs of rabies, and said 'Let's get these tested,'" Martin said.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture tested the animals, since they did not come in contact with - or bite - humans; if they had, Martin would have been sought for faster lab work that produces a result in 24 hours, she said.

The USDA takes its time, since the animals become part of a larger study by the federal arm, Martin added. Plus, there's more cost with the state since the rabid animal has to be decapitated.

The raccoons at GCC tested positive for rabies in May and this month, respectively, Bucher said.

When that happens in Martin's region, there's an investigation and she teaches the parties involved about the disease. "I talked to people on campus and the police chief, since the police station is right across from the campus (on Pine Street)," she said.

"Luckily, Grove City College has a veterinarian on staff. I've talked to her and the biology professor and I know they are planning to do outreach to new students and already talking to their staff. It's good because they need educated about raccoons."

On June 18, the college let the campus community know about the sick raccoons "and to be on alert to any animals acting strangely," Miller noted.

Bucher said 80 percent of all rabies is from raccoons; statewide, of 450 positive rabies cases in 2011, 245 came from raccoons. "There were some cats, foxes, dogs, deer, groundhogs and six cows. There were some human exposures - and once you're exposed, you have to begin treatment right away," she said.

The state Department of Health "works on the exposure side of this," Bucher noted.

Raccoons are the main carrier along the East Coast; the skunk and fox in central U.S. and bats "uniformly spread across the country," Martin said. In Puerto Rico, the mongoose is the highest contributor of rabies and "for the rest of world, it's the dog," she added. 

World-wide, 30,000 humans die of rabies every year, mostly in India and Africa, said Martin.

Dogs were once the most common carrier of rabies, with more than 700 cases in Pennsylvania during the 1940s. That dropped significantly with rabies vaccinations enforced by dog wardens picking up stray animals.

"You don't see the wandering packs of skinny, uncared for dogs like you'd see in Puerto Rico and India," Martin said. There may only be four dogs tested positive for rabies in the state annually now, she said.

A new strain of rabies was introduced in Pennsylvania in the early 1980s when raccoons were transported from the Southeast. It spread in a northwest direction in Pennsylvania, Martin added.

"We have the most rabies here because of the new strain of raccoon rabies. When we see it in domestic animals, it spills over from wildlife."

Indoor cats must now be vaccinated for rabies, because that's where they are most likely to bite humans, she noted. "I think we should include outdoor cats," she said.

Pennsylvania law requires all dogs and non-feral cats three months of age and older to be vaccinated against rabies.

Booster vaccinations must be administered periodically to maintain lifelong immunity. Failure to comply with the law may result in a fine of up to $300, according to a news release.

The rabies virus forms in the saliva and is primarily transferred through an animal bite.

Martin advises people to avoid wild animals, as they are "always picking them up and taking them home; rushing baby raccoons to vets when they think they're injured and they really have rabies," she said.

One of the symptoms of rabies is paralyzed hind legs, which people mistake for an injury. 

Although foxes and cats are known for unprovoked attacks when they are crazed by aggressive "furious" rabies, a raccoon generally gets the more passive "paralytic" rabies, she said.

"They're unusually friendly and come up to you in the day," Martin said. Healthy raccoons are nocturnal.

"You may have a groundhog sleeping on the porch. It's never good, and animal bites should never be ignored," Martin added.

Bats in a house should be caught immediately and tested for rabies, since their bites often go unnoticed - or unfelt - while people are sleeping, she said.

"Frequently, animal bites are not reported and people die of bat rabies and they don't  know it," Martin said. "If you get bit, call me, or the Department of Health or the Game Commission to get a more rapid response."

Martin also said that pet food shouldn't be kept outside, as it draws wildlife.

Get medical attention immediately, whether or not you capture the biting animal. Physicians will administer life-saving shots, which were formerly given in the stomach to make the medicine work slowly. Now, the shots are given in the bite wound and the arm, Martin added.

Last year, only two raccoons tested for rabies in Mercer County, Bucher said. So far this year, only two raccoons have been tested for rabies in the state - obviously, the ones from Grove City College, she added.

"No one should be surprised at those two raccoons in Grove City. Rabies is everywhere," Martin said.

"It's almost normal for every county to have rabies cases. "I've never understood why people are surprised. It's a common disease."

  If you are bitten by an animal, contact Karen Martin, VMD, with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture at 814-332-6890. For more information about rabies, visit the state Department of Agriculture's web site at www.agriculture.state.pa.us and search "rabies."

Published June 27, 2012, in Allied News. Pick up a copy at 201 A Erie St., Grove City.