By Shavonne Potts
spotts@salisburypost.com
Rowan County Animal Control has reported the 19th rabies case of 2009, a raccoon found on Riverwalk Drive.
Jami Morgan reported that her dog, a male golden retriever named Jack, killed the raccoon. She had contact with her dog right after the attack, therefore putting her at risk for exposure.
The dog was current on his rabies vaccination and was taken to a veterinarian for a booster.
Morgan said she saw the dog barking at a brush pile at the edge of their yard. The dog came out and brushed against her, getting saliva on her leg.
She’d been in contact with the dog all day. When she started to burn the brush pile, the dog brought the raccoon out of the pile and killed it.
Morgan immediately thought about her exposure from early that morning. After conferring with her doctor, she opted to take post-exposure rabies shots.
The incident occurred on Sunday, and results returned Tuesday showed the raccoon tested positive for rabies.
She said she knew her dog, Jack, was current on his shots, so then the focus shifted to her own health.
“I decided to get the vaccinations just because I don’t know if I was or was not exposed,” she said.
Morgan’s advice to others is to keep dogs current on their shots and don’t assume that wild animals can’t lurk in your neighborhood.
“If I had to euthanize my dog on top of my own health, I would be devastated,” she said.