A seemingly rabid raccoon attacking a commuter last week at the Valhalla train station is certainly no surprise...except of course for the poor woman who was attacked...considering Westchester County has been ranked the No. 1 spot for rabies cases in all of New York State for the past 2 years!
The equation for the outbreak? Unnaturally huge numbers of feral cats + all sorts of wildlife feeding from the same bowls + any physical interaction between the huge numbers of feral cats and all sorts of other wildlife = the rampant spread of rabies in Westchester County. Don't be fooled by animal rights organizations that claim the TNR feral cat program protects those wild cats from rabies. Impossible! The TNR program gives only one rabies shot to a wild cat and that's it. One. One. One. One rabies shot and no boosters, no boosters, no boosters does not prevent a feral cat from catching and spreading rabies!
That is precisely the reason why NYS law requires cats to be vaccinated against rabies within 4 months of birth plus given a booster shot within the year plus given booster shots every 1-3 years thereafter depending on the type of vaccine for the entire life of the cat. Even a cat that is current with all of the those boosters is still required to get yet another rabies booster shot within 5 days of contact with a suspected rabid animal. A cat that is not current with it's booster shots is required by NYS law to be euthanized or quarantined.
In 2011 the Westchester County Department of Health issued 6 separate rabies alerts specifically related to wild cats. It is important to note that the actual number of rabid cats may be even higher because the DOH does not issue rabies alerts every time a rabies case is confirmed! I learned that the hard way when my next door neighbor who feeds all sorts of wild animals and feral cats was actually attacked by a rabid raccoon and the DOH...not to mention the Yorktown Town Board and police.... refused to issue a public warning of any kind in my neighborhood which includes many children and pets and even a local park!
1. 4-11-11 Rabid cat in Yonkers
2. 5-27-11 Rabid cat in Greenburgh
3. 6-9-11 Rabid cat in Yorktown....This is my personal fave cause it is my hometown but most importantly this rabid feral cat was found in the huge FDR State Park where hundreds of children and thousands of people including pets can be found on any given nice day! And we all know where there is 1 rabid stray cat there are probably more!
4. 7-14-11 Rabid kitten in Mt. Pleasant
5. 10-6-11 Rabid kitten in Ossining
6. 12-1-11 Rabid cat in New Rochelle
The first time ever that the Department of Health publicly acknowledged in their news alert that a rabid kitten may have had contact with other feral strays was on 10-6-11. A local news site even reported that the rabid stray cat was seen in a fight with another stray cat. Which of course means the other stray would probably get rabies and spread it as well!
The second time the DOH publicly stated in their news alert that a rabid feral cat may have had contact with a colony of other stray cats was on 12-1-11. This time the DOH took the warning one step further and implied that since the other wild cats may also be infected with rabies that people should stay away from these other strays.
The only reason the DOH gave more explicit warnings those last 2 times was because I had put their feet to the fire with my emails and phone calls to them and County Executive Rob Astorino's office. It is also because of that and the crucial fact that the Department of Health agrees that the other feral cats in those colonies could very well be rabid that they partnered with those 2 towns to attempt to capture and euthanize all the feral cats in those locations. This capturing and euthanization of those potentially rabid stray cats was never publicized...The only reason I know was that I was told by the Assistant Commissioner for the Bureau of Public Health Protection at the DOH.
Why so quiet?
Because politicians and the DOH are afraid of taking a public stand against the vocal, powerful, lawsuit threatening animal rights groups that falsely promote TNR as the answer to the enormous feral cat problem. Unfortunately it is that fear which has resulted in the rampant continuous spread of rabies in Westchester County.
It is that same fear and the allowing of the continuation of the non-rabies protecting TNR programs that will ultimately result in a human death from rabies...just take a look at what happened in California to 8 year old Precious Reynolds...
Dede - As for allowing agencies to do their job...the number of rabies cases in Westchester County continues to grow earning us the dubious distinction of being the top spot for rabies in all of New York State for the past 2 years! Great job! Also the Department of Health (as well as our own Yorktown police and Town Board) refusing to issue a rabies warning in my neighborhood filled with children and pets even a local park, after a person was attacked by a rabid raccoon is yet another example of a job well done! And that poor 8 year old child in California who contracted rabies from a feral cat scratch...she got rabies from that cat outside during recess at her school! Just imagine the potential for so many other children to have gotten rabies in that same schoolyard! Since a child getting rabies from a feral cat already happened in California- why not here in Westchester County the rabies capital of the State! There are so many cases of rabid cats to be found all over the Internet including recently the feral cat rabies outbreak in New Mexico which resulted in the suspension of their TNR program. As for making the connection between the rabies outbreak in Westchester County and the unnaturally huge numbers of feral cats one only needs a D.C.S. - Degree in Common Sense.
Feral cats also (obviously) decimate wildlife, especially bird populations - but the crazies will say that the feral cats aren't a problem because they aren't the worst problem (habitat loss is the worst problem). Thanks for bringing attention to the environmental problem of feral cats (a problem not solved by TNR programs). It's time to address problems rather than ignoring them by anthropomorphizing these creatures and perpetuating the feral cat problem.
According to the Westchester County Department of Health website....."If you are bitten,scratched or have some other exposure immediately wash the area with warm soapy water and call your doctor or hospital. Call the Westchester County Health Department at (914) 813-5000 24 hours a day seven days a week for assistance. Whether this assistance is in the form of a referral or action by the department will depend upon the circumstances. Have your healthcare provider or emergency room staff FAX a completed report form to (914) 813-5160..." Please refer to the Westchester County Department of Health website for more information. I'm sorry that happened to your daughter and wish you the best.
On a separate note, do you know any child that has taken the shot? I am afraid of crazy side effects but of course if she is in the danger zone, she will have to take them. Thanks...I really want to find the cat though...
You seemed to have received some criminally-irresponsible advice from whatever health authorities you've contacted. You have to wait to see if the cat shows signs of rabies before your daughter does? What if her rabies gestation period is 1 month but the cat doesn't show signs for another 7 months? Keep in mind too, even if a cat is vaccinated against rabies doesn't mean that it didn't just get done using a dying rabid-bat for a play-toy and then come and scratch or bite you right after that. With a mouthful or claws full of fresh rabies virus. The cat may not contract rabies, it being vaccinated, but that doesn't mean it still can't carry that fresh rabies virus to all other animals and humans it comes in contact with after it has shredded a dying rabid animal for its fun. Cats are now transmitting many deadly diseases for which there are no vaccines against them, many of them listed as bioterrorism agents. People have even died from cat-transmitted plague in the USA. No rats nor fleas even required. The cats themselves can contract and spread the plague all on their own. Seek competent medical advice, and report the ones you've contacted so far for criminal negligence.
Although TNR advocates will tell you that the 1-3 year rabies vaccine is sufficient, it may not be. But that really doesn't matter. When someone is bitten or scratched by a cat that cannot be re-captured quickly, the public health department has to assume the animal was rabid and the person must be administered shots. Sometimes this course of treatment can cost upwards of $10,000 and many insurance companies will not reimburse for this. The only solution that protects public health, personal property rights, and the cats themselves is TNE, trap, neuter, enclose. Homeowners that love cats can build enclosures or 'catios' in their yards and house 8-10 cats safely and securely. Anything less is not humane to the cats, or to wildlife.