Rabies confirmed in skunk that attacked dog in Lynchburg

By Cynthia Pegram
Lynchburg News & Advance
Published: June 3, 2008

The Health Department has confirmed rabies in a skunk found in the Windsor Hills area of Lynchburg and suspects rabies in a second skunk-related incident.

Several pet dogs are now in 45-day precautionary observation following the exposure last week.

The rabid skunk was caught on Yorkshire Circle last week after a concerned resident called Lynchburg Animal Control, said Steve Simpson, environmental health manager for the Central Virginia Health District. The positive finding came back Thursday from the Virginia Department of Health laboratory.

The skunk had fought with the family’s dog, said Simpson.

The dog’s vaccination is up to date. Simpson said the dog is under observation for the next 45 days, but able to remain home.

On Friday, a second report came in about a skunk that had attacked two German shepherds in the same area of the city.

“The homeowner drove the skunk off,” said Simpson. The incident was not reported until later, he said.

Because the skunk went after the two dogs, and because of the earlier confirmation in the same neighborhood, “We’re assuming the skunk was rabid,” said Simpson.

Both dogs had been vaccinated, he said, but are in the 45-day observation period. “The rabies vaccine has been shown to be highly reliable. The 45 days is our way of being extra, extra cautious,” said Simpson.

Christy Jackson of Yorkshire Circle owns the bloodhound exposed to the confirmed rabid skunk.

She said she drove into her driveway and smelled a skunk. She checked on her dog in the backyard and saw the large skunk that appeared to be dead. “I assumed the dog got hold of it,” she said.

The skunk began moving. It flopped, and began moving slowly. Jackson thought her dog had injured the skunk, and called Animal Control because she knew that skunks could carry rabies.

Animal Control killed the skunk and the health department sent it to the state lab in Richmond for testing.

She said a family member later killed two smaller skunks last weekend and burned the remains.

Jackson said her dog was examined Friday by her veterinarian and given a rabies booster shot so immunity will be at its highest level. They’ll keep the dog on home quarantine for 45 days. As a precaution, the booster was given to a second family dog as well, said Jackson.

Last year Virginia had the highest number of animal rabies cases reported in 25 years, some 730 cases statewide.

So far this year Lynchburg has a total of four confirmed or suspected cases of rabies in wild animals, said Simpson. The first was a fox, tested in January, and the others are skunks.

Simpson said it’s too early to tell if the 2007 rabies trend continues into this year.

As of May 17, the state Web site shows confirmed cases in two raccoons in Amherst County, two raccoons in Bedford County and one horse and one skunk in Campbell County.