Rabies cases continue to increase
Nacogdoches County has first rabid skunks reported in 10 years

From Staff Reports

January 23, 2003 -- For the first time in 10 years, rabid skunks have been reported in Nacogdoches County, according to reports issued by Texas Department of Health, Tyler.

The reportings came within four days of each other - on Jan. 10 and Jan. 14. On Jan. 10, a dead skunk was found by a 5-year-old who lives 18 miles west of Nacogdoches; and on Jan. 14, a homeowner who lives southwest of Nacogdoches, shot a skunk who approached her home and fought with her dog.

Both skunks tested positive for rabies.

"These cases are significant because they are the first rabid animals reported in Nacogdoches County since a rabid bat was found in 1996; but the last rabid skunk in the county was reported in 1992, noted Dr. James Wright, veterinarian with Texas Department of Health (TDH) in Tyler.

"In the years prior to and including 2000, there were numerous cases of skunk rabies in the counties west of Anderson, Houston, and Trinity counties. However, there were no reported cases in these counties, all of which lie east of the Trinity River. In 2001, the outbreak "swam" the river and cases began to be seen in Anderson (eight skunks, one cow), Houston (27 skunks), and Trinity (one skunk) counties," Wright explained. "In 2002, the disease continued to move eastward with Trinity County recording 12 rabid skunks and Angelina County finding six."

The veterinarian also pointed out another interesting fact about the Nacogdoches County rabies cases. "Nacogdoches County is also east of Cherokee County, which has not reported a rapid skunk in the past 10 years. This case represents a continued spread of the rabies outbreak in East Texas."

TDH also reported several other recently confirmed rabies cases in East Texas.

On Jan. 8 in Hopkins County, a family smelled a strong skunk odor outside their home in the southeastern part of the county. The next morning they discovered a dead skunk in the yard with their dogs. The skunk was positive for rabies.

In the middle of the afternoon on Jan. 3, an Anderson County homeowner, who lives north of Palestine between Tennessee Colony and Cayuga, saw a skunk chasing her dog. The skunk then charged at the back door. The skunk, shot and killed, tested positive for rabies.

On the last day of 2002, a homeowner in Van Zandt County (near Ben Wheeler) smelled a skunk but could not find one in her yard. The next day, around midmorning, she smelled it again and this time the family's dog was barking at the skunk as it attempted to get on the home's deck, Wright reported. The skunk was shot and killed; tests confirmed it was positive for rabies.

In Lamar County on Dec. 25, 2002, a homeowner who lives two miles north of Roxton, found his dogs fighting with a skunk around 4 p.m. The owner shot and killed the skunk. "Using rubber gloves, he placed the skunk on ice in an ice chest until he could contact the police department to pick the skunk up," cited Wright. Tests on the skunk determined it was positive for rabies.