Rabies Information

Animal Bites

If you are bitten by an animal, you should seek medical attention immediately. After you have been treated by a healthcare professional, you should report the incident to the CCCHD at 937-390-5600 and complete an Animal Report Form to ensure that the necessary actions are taken to examine the animal for the rabies virus. You can also use our general request form page to file an incident.

The CCCHD investigates all animal bites occurring in Clark County per the Ohio Administrative Code. If an animal bites a person, the incident should be reported to the CCCHD so that the proper procedure can be administered. The animal in the biting incident must be quarantined for ten days from the date of the bite. At the end of the ten day quarantine, two actions must be completed:

  • The animal must be given the rabies vaccination.
  • A CCCHD official must examine the animal and determine whether or not it is exhibiting any symptoms of the rabies virus.

Get more details about rabies prevention and what to do in these cases by reading Rabies Prevention and Rabies Vaccination below.

Rabies Prevention

Rabies, a virus that affects the nervous system of mammals, is a serious threat to the health of humans once they have been exposed to an infected animal. The CCCHD’s rabies policy is to prevent the spread of human rabies cases by identifying the animal rabies cases in the county and treating infected animals with isolation and vaccination. Vaccination of domestic animals against the rabies virus entails immunizations at three months of age and one year later, as well as revaccinations annually after the initial immunizations. The CCCHD aims to prevent the spread of rabies through the Rabies Prevention Program.

The goal of the Rabies Prevention Program is twofold:

  • Increase the number of animals vaccinated against the rabies virus
  • Educate and inform the general public of rabies and how to avoid exposure to the virus

Rabies Vaccination Clinic

The Clark County Combined Health District (CCCHD) is concerned about the number of dogs and cats that go unvaccinated each year against rabies. Rabies is a virus that attacks the brain and nervous system.  It can infect all mammals and is seen mostly in bats, skunks, raccoons and other wild animals.  Once a person or animal becomes sick with rabies, they will usually die.

During our vaccination clinic, certified veterinarians offer vaccinations for pets at a fee of $10.00 per animal. One-year vaccinations are available to unvaccinated animals and three-year vaccinations are available upon proof of a current, or recently expired, vaccination.

The date of the first Tuesday after Labor Day in September of each year, from 4:00-7:00 p.m., has been set aside to hold this clinic at the Health District office and all residents are encouraged to utilize this clinic in order to insure that all dogs and cats in Clark County are properly vaccinated against this disease.

The health and safety of all residents of our county is of primary importance to CCCHD and we are pleased to offer this vital service as a part of our efforts to promote public health. Questions regarding our rabies vaccination clinic can be directed to the Environmental Division of CCCHD at (937) 390-5600.

History:

Between June 2006 and July 2007, a total of 13 bats tested positive for rabies, many of which involved a possible exposure to either a dog or cat, requiring a quarantine of that animal for no less than six months.Based upon the prevalence of rabies in our county, the Clark County Combined Health District Board of Health passed a resolution on July 19, 2007, declaring that all dogs and cats are required to be vaccinated for rabies. As a service to the residents of Clark County, CCCHD began offering a vaccination clinic, in cooperation with the Humane Society serving Clark County, Inc., for all animal owners to have their dogs, cats or ferrets vaccinated by a certified veterinarian.

Three clinics where held in 2007 where a total of 432 animals were vaccinated.  We have held one clinic per year since that time, vaccinating a total of 100 in 2008, 88 in 2009, and 252 in 2010.  We just completed our clinic for 2011 in which we vaccinated a total of 261 animals, our highest number for any one clinic to date.  We believe this high turnout is partly due to our efforts to inform the public about the need to have their animals vaccinated and the low cost that we were able to offer to the residents of Clark County.