09/22/2026
Get your pets vaccinated!! It is in VA and deadly!
Goat With Rabies” sounds more like the title of a low-budget B-side horror movie than a real news story — but this one is very real. A goat in Virginia recently tested positive for rabies, adding to a growing number of confirmed animal cases across the state. (Photo For Attention - Not the actual Goat)
RABIES ALERT: CDC WARNS OF RISE IN EXPOSURES — VIRGINIA HAS REPORTED 280 POSITIVE ANIMALS
ROANOKE, Va. — A new nationwide health advisory is putting renewed attention on rabies after federal health officials reported an increase in people being exposed to animals that are rabid or potentially infected.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued the advisory Sept. 10 after receiving 17% more rabies-related inquiries during July and August 2026 than during the same two months last year. At least eight state health departments have also reported increases in rabies post-exposure treatment, problems with how treatments were administered, or both.
And rabies is certainly not absent here in Virginia.
According to Virginia Department of Health data, 280 animals tested positive for rabies across Virginia during the first six months of 2026 — 117 during the first quarter and another 163 between April and June.
Those 280 confirmed cases included:
🦝 155 raccoons
🦨 64 skunks
🐱 24 cats
🦇 20 bats
🦊 11 foxes
🐿️ 3 groundhogs
🐈 1 bobcat
🐄 1 cow
🐐 1 goat
VDH's quarterly data also shows the issue has been present locally. The state recorded six positive animals attributed to Roanoke during the first quarter and 13 more during the second quarter, for 19 during the first half of the year.
WHY THIS MATTERS
Rabies is a virus that attacks the nervous system and can be transmitted when infected saliva enters the body, most commonly through an animal bite. Scratches and saliva entering an open wound, mouth, nose or eyes can also create an exposure risk. Raccoons, skunks, foxes and bats are among the wildlife most commonly associated with rabies in Virginia, although any mammal can become infected.
One of the biggest dangers is that you cannot necessarily determine whether an animal has rabies simply by looking at it.
And rabies is not a disease to “wait and see” about. Once clinical symptoms develop in a person, the disease is nearly always fatal. The good news is that rabies can be prevented after an exposure when proper medical treatment is received before symptoms develop.
⚠️ BITTEN OR SCRATCHED? HERE'S WHAT THE CDC SAYS TO DO
If you or your pet comes into contact with wildlife or an animal acting strangely — particularly following a bite or scratch — the CDC recommends immediately washing any wound thoroughly with soap and water, or water alone, for 15 minutes.
Then contact a healthcare provider or public health professional as soon as possible so they can determine whether rabies post-exposure treatment is necessary. Don't assume you're safe simply because the wound is small or the animal looked normal.
The CDC says around 100,000 Americans receive rabies post-exposure prophylaxis each year. For people who have never previously been vaccinated against rabies, treatment generally includes wound care, rabies immune globulin and a series of rabies vaccinations.
The CDC is also urging people to keep their distance from wildlife, avoid approaching sick, injured or dead animals, keep pets current on rabies vaccinations and contact animal control when appropriate.
Bottom line: Rabies in humans remains uncommon in the United States, but rabid animals are still very much present — including right here in Virginia.
If you are bitten, scratched or believe you or your pet may have been exposed to a potentially rabid animal, don't gamble with it. Wash the area immediately and contact a medical provider, veterinarian, animal control or your local health department for guidance.
SHARE THIS — especially with pet owners and anyone who spends a lot of time outdoors.
