60-Day Rabies Alert Issued for Parts of Palm Coast After Cat Tests Positive

The Florida Department of Health in Flagler County is issuing a rabies alert for parts of the county. This is in response to a cat that tested positive on March 15.

This rabies alert is for 60 days. The center of the rabies alert is at Poince Place, in Palm Coast, and includes the following boundaries in Flagler County:

• Eastern boundary, Interstate 95, Palm Coast
• Northern boundary, White View Pkwy, Palm Coast
• Southern boundary, State Hwy 100, Palm Coast
• Western boundary, US Hwy 1, Bunnell

 An animal with rabies could infect other animals that have not received a rabies vaccination. Domestic animals are at risk if they are not vaccinated; rabies is always a danger in wild animal populations.

Rabies alerts by health departments are not unusual. So far this year, as of Wednesday, the Department of Health lists 1,565 cases of possible rabies exposure in Florida, including 136 cases in Broward County, 125 in Miami Dade and three in Flagler. But it lists zero cases of human rabies, and 20 cases of actual animal rabies (including the one from Flagler). Alachua had four, Columbia County had three. Last year there were 76 cases of animal rabies in the state, 7,912 cases of possible exposure (33 of them in Flagler), and zero cases of human rabies.

The Centers for Disease Control reports that “Cases of human rabies cases in the United States are rare, with only 1 to 3 cases reported annually. Twenty-five cases of human rabies have been reported in the United States in the past decade (2009-2018). Seven of these infections were acquired outside of the U.S. and its territories.” Only two of the 25 individuals survived. Rabies resulted from bites from dogs, bats and raccoons. But in every case of a dog bite, the dog was not on American soil.

“The number of human rabies deaths in the United States has been steadily declining since the 1970’s thanks to animal control and vaccination programs, successful outreach programs, public health capacity and laboratory diagnostics, and the availability of modern rabies biologics,” the CDC reports. “Yet each year, hundreds of thousands of animals need to be placed under observation or be tested for rabies, and between 30,000 to 60,000 people need to receive rabies postexposure prophylaxis.”

So while the likelihood of danger should be kept in perspective, potential exposure raises serious concerns and cannot be taken lightly.

If you have been bitten or scratched by a wild or domestic animal, seek medical attention and report the injury to DOH-Flagler by calling 386-437-7358.

If your pet is bitten by a wild animal, seek immediate veterinary assistance for the animal, and contact Animal Control – Flagler Humane Society at 386-246-8612.

Rabies is a disease of the nervous system and is fatal to warm blooded animals and humans. The only treatment for human exposure to rabies is rabies specific immune globulin and rabies immunization. Appropriate treatment started soon after the exposure will protect an exposed person from the disease.




Residents and visitors are advised to take the following precautions to prevent exposure to rabies:

• Avoid all contact with wildlife, particularly raccoons, bats, foxes, skunks, otters, bobcats and coyotes. Never adopt wild animals or bring them into your home.
• Never handle unfamiliar animals (wild or domestic), even if they appear
• Do not feed or unintentionally attract wild animals with open garbage cans or
• Keep rabies vaccinations current for all
• Keep pets under direct supervision so they do not come into contact with wild
• Prevent bats from entering living quarters or occupied spaces in homes, churches, schools, and other similar areas where they might encounter people and pets.

For more information on rabies, please visit FloridaHealth.gov.