JAMES CITY COUNTY — The Peninsula Health District announced that a stray cat found in the 400 block of Bulifants Boulevard has tested positive for the rabies virus.
According to the Hampton & Peninsula Health Districts, rabies is a fatal, but preventable, disease that is carried by mammals and has been in the wild animal population on the Peninsula since the mid-1980s.
The local office of Environmental Health Services will be contacting the immediate neighbors as well as any civic or homeowners’ association that serves the community, it added.
Anyone with information regarding any exposure to this animal — a bite, scratch or contact with saliva by open wound or eyes, nose, mouth — should contact the Peninsula Health District — Williamsburg/JCC Environmental Health Office at 757-603-4277.
Exposures also include direct contact between a pet and the rabid animal. After hours, contact local Animal Control, York County Animal Control: 757-890-3601 or Williamsburg/JCC Animal Control: 757-565-0370.
The Peninsula Health District reminds all citizens to follow these three important rabies prevention guidelines:
- Vaccinate pets.
- Report all exposures to animals (usually bites and scratches) to your doctor and the local health department.
- Enjoy wildlife from a distance — don’t feed or encourage wild animals such as raccoons, skunks or foxes to visit your premises.
