Upswing in Rabies Cases Seen in Middletown

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By John Burton
MIDDLETOWN – There is a positive side for the rash of rabies alerts the township has had over the last few months, said Richard DeBenedetto, director of the Middletown Department of Health.
“More people are aware and reporting to us when they suspect something because of the alerts.” That has increased the number of discovered instances and heightening public awareness, DeBenedetto said.
Since February, the township health department has reported 13 cases of rabies around the sprawling 40-square-mile municipality, the largest in Monmouth County.
“We’re getting more calls on everything,” said DeBenedetto, whose department also oversees animal control. While the majority of the calls amount to false alarms, it has turned attention on the situation, he said.
The 13 confirmed cases involved 12 raccoons and one fox have occurred throughout the township and are not concentrated in any one location, he said.
Along with being “a good thing to let people know what’s going on,” he said, “it’s a great reminder that this is why we keep asking you to license your dogs, license your cats.” It helps stress the importance of getting the pets vaccinated to protect them from infection, DeBenedetto said.
Asked if the number of incidents reported was particularly high, the health director said, “Yes and no.”
“It is a high number, relatively,” he said. But, rabies cases seem to run in three-year cycles, with this being the anticipated upswing in occurrences.
Other towns will likely see an uptick as well, he said, because of the cycle and the time of year. More cases are reported in summer because “people are out this time of the year.”
Monmouth County has had 21 reported rabies cases from Jan. 1 to June 30 this year. The only other county to report more cases for that time period was Burlington with 25. The number of cases overall statewide has declined, according to Daniel Emmer, a spokesman for the state Department of Health.
The spikes in rabies in Monmouth and Burlington counties are most likely related to increases in raccoon populations there, Emmer said in an email response to questions about the outbreak.
For the same period in 2013, Monmouth County reported seven cases, while Burlington had 11, according to state figures.
Conversely, these areas will likely see fewer cases the following year because of a higher mortality due to the infection and a lower population, the spokesman said.
DeBenedetto and David Henry, health officer for the Monmouth County Health Commission, stressed prevention and diligence in addressing rabies. If members of the public witness strange animal behavior – aggressive behavior toward humans, stumbling, walking in circles, falling over, biting itself – “those are signs something’s wrong,” DeBenedetto said, and the public should contact authorities immediately.
Area residents should be especially watchful for bats, which traditionally are responsible for the highest number of rabies transmissions to domestic pets and humans, health officials said.
Rabies can be deadly in warm-blooded mammals, including humans, if not treated immediately, they stressed.
“My message to people is don’t touch wildlife, get your pets vaccinated and licensed and, if you see something, give us a call. Let the professionals handle it,” DeBenedetto said.