Animal Control officers urge residents to be watchful in the wake of at least two, and probably three, wildlife rabies cases during the past week in the Sunset Lake /Optimist Farm Road area of Holly Springs.

Wake County Animal Control sent out automated telephone messages Tuesday afternoon within a two-mile radius of a home on Optimist Farm Road where a rabid fox attacked a pet dog.

Town Animal Control officers have set out traps and searched for the litter of a second rabid fox. That fox had attacked a homeowner in Sunset Lake Village. Town officers have also used reverse 911 technology to alert area residents.

"We want everybody to be aware of the situation and to be on the lookout for any animal acting strangely," Lt. Anthony Revels of the Holly Springs Police Department said Tuesday.

Schools in the vicinity and Wake County health officials have been apprised of the rabies outbreak, the largest that Holly Springs police remember.

Animals impaired by rabies may act unpredictably or aggressively, approaching or even attacking people and pets rather than running away. In Holly Springs, call 557-9111 if you see an animal acting unusually, especially near homes. Call 911 immediately if a person or pet is exposed.

Cases in Holly Springs within the past week include:

A confirmed case of rabies in a fox that attacked a pet Chihuahua on Saturday, May 24, outside a home on Optimist Farm Road. A suspected case of rabies in a raccoon found Saturday, May 24, in one of the traps that Animal Control officers had set out in Sunset Lake Village. The animal did not meet state criteria for testing since no known exposure to people or pets occurred. A confirmed case of rabies in another fox that scratched a woman Tuesday, May 20, behind a home in Sunset Lake Village. The woman is undergoing rabies prevention treatment.

Rabies tests were negative in a fox pup that was killed Monday, May 26, apparently by a dog. That fox pup was found near where the raccoon had been trapped two days earlier.

State law requires rabies vaccination for dogs and cats. An unvaccinated pet that is exposed to rabies must be euthanized or quarantined for six months, Animal Control officers said.

Homeowners should not set out food for foxes, raccoons or other wildlife, police said. Securing garbage can lids and removing attractions such as pet food bowls also can help keep wildlife at an appropriate distance.

Until the past week, Revels said, Holly Springs police had had only one confirmed case of rabies in the past year. That involved a raccoon that attacked a cat. The cat had been vaccinated.

Twice a year, Holly Springs police hold low cost rabies vaccination clinics to reduce the number of unprotected pets in Holly Springs. The next is planned for late summer or early fall.

The state Department of Health and Human Services has information on rabies at epi.state.nc.us/epi/rabies/.

(source: Town of Holly Springs)