Raccoon Rabies Vaccine Bait Program Begins Aug. 29

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, MD — Starting Thursday, Aug. 29, the Anne Arundel County Department of Health will conduct the annual raccoon oral rabies vaccination (ORV) project. Bait will be placed across Anne Arundel County to vaccinate raccoons against rabies. The project should be completed by the end of September, weather permitting.

The bait contains the liquid rabies vaccine and will be set up in neighborhoods by ground teams of trained department of health staff. Teams will be wearing shirts featuring department of health logos and will be traveling in marked county vehicles.

Bait also will be dropped from a low-flying county police helicopter in less populated areas. The bait will either look like a ketchup packet with a light brown waxy coating or like a small brown brick with a plastic packet inside it. The vaccine is contained within the packet.

The vaccine immunizes raccoons when they bite into it. It does not cause rabies and is not harmful to raccoons, pets and other animals. There is a very low risk to human health. The department of health recommends that pet owners keep their pets confined or on a leash during the baiting period and for two weeks thereafter.