FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Jan. 5, 2024

COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) confirmed that two raccoons from two different counties have tested positive for rabies.

• A raccoon found near Hampton Avenue and Lloyd Street in Greenville, S.C., has tested positive for rabies. No people are known to have been exposed at this time. One dog was exposed and will be quarantined as required in the South Carolina Rabies Control Act.
• A second raccoon found near Powderhouse Road SE and Sparkleberry Lane in Aiken, S.C., has also tested positive for rabies. No people are known to have been exposed at this time. One dog was exposed and will be quarantined as required in the Rabies Control Act.

Both the Greenville County and Aiken County raccoons were submitted to DHEC’s laboratory on Jan. 3, 2024, and were confirmed to have rabies on Jan. 4, 2024. If you believe you, someone you know or your pets have come in contact with either the Greenville County or Aiken County raccoon, or another animal that potentially has rabies, please call DHEC’s Public Health Upstate Greenville-Spartanburg office at (864) 372-3270 or Aiken office at (803) 642-1637 during normal business hours (8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday-Friday) or after hours and on holidays at (888) 847-0902 (Select Option 2).

“Keeping your pets up to date on their rabies vaccination is the easiest way to protect you and your family from this deadly virus,” said Terri McCollister, Rabies Program director. “Any mammal has the ability to carry and transmit the disease to people or pets. Therefore, give wild and stray animals plenty of space.”

In South Carolina, rabies is most often found in wildlife such as raccoons, skunks, foxes and bats, but pets are just as susceptible to the virus. If you see an animal in need, avoid touching it. Contact someone trained in handling animals, such as your local animal control officer, wildlife control officer or a wildlife rehabilitator. An exposure is defined as direct contact (such as through broken skin or mucous membranes in the eyes, nose or mouth) with saliva or brain/nervous system tissue from an infected animal.

In 2024, the Greenville County raccoon is the first animal to test positive for rabies in that county, and the Aiken County raccoon is the first animal in that county to test positive for rabies. There have been three cases of rabid animals statewide this year. Since 2002, South Carolina has averaged approximately 148 positive cases a year. Of the 78 confirmed rabies cases in South Carolina in 2023, three were in Greenville County, and one was in Aiken County.

Contact information for local Public Health offices is available at https://scdhec.gov/RabiesContacts. For more information on rabies visit scdhec.gov/rabies or cdc.gov/rabies.

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