The recent surge in the number of rabies cases in Hanover reminds Dartmouth students to be careful when dealing with animals in order to avoid contracting the deadly disease.
Rabid animals were found in the area around West Wheelock Street last fall, but they have relocated in the corner of town near Rip Road, Reservoir Road and the Hemlock Road area this spring, according to the Valley News.
Director of College Health Services Jack Turco emphasized that the reported cases have only been among wild animals.
"Some rabid animals have been found," he said. "There has only been one case of documented transmission to humans in Connecticut by a bat."
"This outbreak has been in animals," he added. "We're concerned because there can be a transmission from animals to humans."
But he also noted that rabies transmissions to humans are rare.
"It's incredibly rare to have transmission to humans," Turco said.
Turco said the rabies vaccine has prevented the recent cases of rabies from turning into an epidemic.
Rabies is a viral disease that is spread from animal saliva, Turco said. It attacks the central nervous system.
If a person is immunized before the virus reaches the central nervous system, he will most likely survive, Turco said.
But once the virus spreads into the nervous system, there are very few cases that doctors can treat successfully.
"It is felt to be universally fatal," Turco said. "When you have a definite case of rabies and it is in your body and replicating, there are very few saves. It is a very fatal illness."
If a person is bitten by an animal suspected to be rabid, they should do everything to allow the police to trap the animal so that it can be checked, Turco said.
"The most absolute way is to check the animal," he said. "If the police feel the animal is rabid, they do an autopsy on the brain."
"They may take the animal into capture and observe it", Turco added. "If they have rabies, they will get sick within four to five days."
Turco emphasized the need for people not to try to capture a potentially rabid animal on their own.
"If [people] see an animal that's acting strangely, acting overtly aggressive, get in touch with the police," he added.
"You should call the police because they have a specific protocol," he said. "The animal will show signs and it will be obvious that the animal is sick. However, the only way to tell for sure is to look for pathological signs in the brain."
Turco said people can look at an animal's behavior to try to determine if it is rabid.
