January 4, 2008 Brandon faces rabid skunk outbreak Two cases confirmed as sick animals chase horses, attack broomsticks Skunks that should be hunkering down to hibernate in southern Manitoba are, according to this story,  instead braving low temperatures to hound horses, attack inanimate objects and charge at people. A rabies outbreak has hit Brandon, prompting police in Manitoba's second largest city to issue a  rare warning this week to beware bizarrely behaving skunks. Since mid-December, two cases of rabid skunks have been confirmed - either by testing or by observing  aggressive behaviour - in that area of the city. Traps have also been set, as officials expect more. The story goes on to say that three horses are now under 60-day quarantine in case they have been  exposed to the virus from skunks nipping at their hooves. Officials are warning people to keep their  pets under control, indoors and vaccinated against the almost- always fatal disease. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency usually counts hundreds of cases a year of rabies in animals,  normally in skunks, bats and raccoons, but the virus has also been found in domestic animals. In  recent years, Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba and Saskatchewan accounted for the bulk of animal infections;  the virus has rarely surfaced in Atlantic Canada.

Copyright:  Alberta Equestrian Federation

5/17/2008 : 3:35:48 AM