Trapping a rabid raccoon

I know some people trap raccoons for hunting or sport; I've been trapping them for 5 years on our property under the nuisance wildlife provisions. However in that time I've never trapped a rabid raccoon (that I know of) until the last few days. I learned a lot, some of which I share below. I should start out by answering the question how do I know he was rabid? Well of course unless his head is taken and sent to a lab no one can be 100% sure. But several of our neighbors (myself included) have seen him wandering around the area since Saturday. He was out several times during the day including at noon (raccoons are normally nocturnal), he wasn't afraid of, or even seemed to notice the presence of, anyone (even cars within 4' of him), and he was walking around like he was drunk - weird gait, wobbling, etc.

I tried to hunt him the first time I saw him on Saturday but by the time I retrieved my air rifle he had vanished. I finally was able to trap him Tuesday night. Since that time here are my lessons learned:

You're on your own.

I've always gotten a DNR trapping permit (877-463-6497) to do this legally, and I know from dealing with them that normally you have to euthanize the animal on site; relocation is not allowed by law.

In the past, I've shot the raccoons (with an air rifle; I live in a wooded but residential neighborhood) then immediately dumped them in the woods behind the house. Within a day the carcass is always gone. Some scavenger (foxes I think but maybe other raccoons) always eat them. I was reluctant to do that this time because, knowing the animal to be rabid, I don't want secondary infection of rabies to spread to other animals - who then in turn can spread it along to yet more animals.

So I thought I'd give DNR a call to see if they would take away a rabid raccoon - still live, trapped in my cage. No, they said, but Animal Control will. So I called Anne Arundel County Animal Control who said they can't do it, but DNR will. You see where this is going. I point out that they've sent me in a circle, so they agree to call each other and get it straightened out. About an hour later, I get a call back. It's on me. If the animal was in the house, Animal Control would be dispatched. Since it was trapped outside, it's my responsibility. (DNR apparently signed a consent decree a few years back with the commercial trappers to be noncompetitive; that's why they're out of the business.)

So, late yesterday afternoon, I shot him in the trap.

How long can rabies survive in a dead animal?

I was still left with that problem - once I shot the animal how long before it's safe to let scavengers have at him? (I might add Animal Control said I could double-bag the carcass and put him out with the trash, but his saliva is certainly on the fur, double bagging him would require direct manipulation of his body, and I don't have the right HAZMAT equipment to where I want to be touching a known rabid animal. More on that later.)

The guy from DNR told me "6 hours. Once rigor mortis sets it it's completely safe." For some reason that just didn't ring true so I did a bit of research. And the answer came back: no one knows. There have been no studies (that I could find) where researchers looked at that question.

What I did find was an NIH research study (abstract here) that was relevant and very interesting. Basically they showed that the rabies virus can remain active on a plant leaf up to 24 hours at 69 degrees Fahrenheit, and 48 hours on metal (uh ... like a metal cage trap). The longest recorded survival time was 144 hours (6 days) at 5C (41F degrees).

So what am I going to do? Well he's dead now, and the temperatures have been dropping into the 50s at night and 70s in the day. I'm going to keep him in the cage for 3 days (that would be Saturday) then dump him in the back woods. That's longer than the "normal" but shorter than the "record". I'd keep in in there the whole 6 days however I want to trap the entire local raccoon population (in past years my experience has been that usually means 4 coons) to ensure his family is taken out too in case he infected them as well. Plus, there's always the slight chance I got the wrong coon and the real bad guy is still on the loose. I can't wait a whole week.

The 22 cal Benjamin Discovery air rifle is an excellent varmint rifle.

In past years I've put down raccoons with a standard 177 cal pellet rifle. (I can't use a real firearm because of where I live.) But I discovered you had to hit them perfectly square between but slightly elevated above the eyes to drop them in one shot. Forget about profile hits; the skull is too thick on the sides. That can be a problem if the animal is trying to hide his face from you. However last year I ran into what I called "up-armored" raccoons that simply would not go down easily no matter where I hit them. So after last season I upgraded to the 22 cal Disco. Excellent choice! Every coon I shot this year (including the one I put down yesterday) has dropped in one shot. Front, side, angle - it did not matter. The Disco had enough power and size to end it quickly, efficiently, and as humanely as possible. One shot one kill.

I do need to upgrade my personal protection gear.

In the past I've used an analogy to the gun safety rule: Treat every gun as if it's always loaded. I've done the same with raccoons: I've assumed every one I trapped and shot might possibly be rabid.

However I have to tell you that knowing that in theory, and dealing with one in reality, has certainly caused me to rethink a few handling protocols.

I've always worn rubber gloves when handling the traps. I'll keep doing that. However as a precaution against aerosol transmission I've also worn a common dust mask. (There have been some cases (rare but real) where people have contracted rabies not through bites or open wounds but through air-borne saliva, in particular bats that flew into a room from the outside.) And as I was moving this trap around from the trapping to the shooting area, and he was frantically trying to escape in the cage, I was thinking my cheap disposable dust mask just might not fit the bill. This was compounded when I considered I'm shooting the raccoons in the head ... and saliva and the nervous system (e.g. brain) are where the virus is found.

So I'm looking to upgrade to something with a better filter and that actually makes an air-tight seal around the face. I'm looking for opinions/recommendations on that. What do you think about:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_2&smid=A1M5ZO1ZC1KIW
or
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...rue&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

I really know nothing about serious respiratory protective systems. Anyone have any experience with these types of higher-grade masks?

The Havahart traps work well against raccoons

I've owned and used these traps for five years and have caught many coons in them. If you need one, I recommend the type with the Easy Set open/close mechanism. Not only are they easier to set, but the metal plate protecting your hand near the carrying handle is larger. I've had raccoons reach through the bars and try to claw my hand as I carry them away to be shot, and the Easy Set versions afford the most protection.

I've found model 1085 works well for me. MSRP is $76 however the best price I could find is at Lowe's where they can be found for $50 - that even beats the Amazon price.

Anyway, that's my story. I hope some of you find it of value should you find yourself in a similar situation. And please send along your thoughts and comments on what sort of new mask I should get for the next time I dispatch a raccoon. Thanks.

Bury the rabid one so nothing eats it. No reason to be an outlier in a science experiment.

Burn it?

Since you handle so many raccoons, have you checked on getting the rabies vaccine? Just another level in your protection. Can you dump him and burn the carcass? Then wash/disinfect the cage.

I say bleach dilution on everything even the raccoon then bury it then re-bleach all tools. The have a heart traps never worked for me. They would just toss the cage around til it went off then pick the bait through the mesh.

Re: burying him - I've considered that. The only reason I didn't go to that option first is that the most realistic place to buy him is in the woods directly behind where the cage sits now. I know from past experience that area is overgrown with roots. That means not just digging, but hacking through tree roots. I'd be huffing & puffing deeply in an area where I'm kicking up (and breathing) dust that might possibly contain brain material splattered directly behind where he was shot.

Re: burning him - I hadn't considered that yet, but we've all read about the dangers of burning poison ivy. Would the bad stuff be rendered inert by the time smoke carries it up?

Both are still possibilities however for sure I'd want to upgrade to a better mask before I implement those choices.

It's also caused me to rethink my whole geometry layout of where I do stuff (trap, shoot, and maybe bury) for the future.

Re: the rabies vaccine, I might consider that as well. I've thought about it in the past. The only thing holding me back is our daughter got chomped by a ("cute and fuzzy") wild animal that she picked up while at camp a couple of years back ( kids - what are you gonna do???) and if I recall correctly the post-bite vaccine regime cost us on the order of $700. That's a lot for a low-probability event especially considering the precautions I've already been taking. I also don't know if the pre-bite vaccine is the same (and same cost) as the post-bite treatment. Maybe our favorite forum doctor with the great hair might wander by soon and offer his opinion- Teratos?

I have called and my neighbors have called for confined racoons and AACO animal control came out an euthanized them. I didn't "trap" them per se .

I was told frozen for two days for animal meat to be safe.

I would just use full strength beach initially on the traps/whatever. And let them sit in case I missed a spot.

Burying deep enough so other animals won't bother them, away from water sources, and in double plastic bags sounds like a good option for disposal.

kstone803 said:

The have a heart traps never worked for me. They would just toss the cage around til it went off then pick the bait through the mesh.

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I stake the traps down in the rear with two 18" pieces of rebar through two of the cage bars. There's one row of mesh that extends past the main portion of the trap that lends itself well to that purpose. It keeps the trap from being moved by any animals & thus prevents the problem you described, yet it's easy for me to lift up the trap and move it when I need to do so. Separately to solve a different potential problem I cable-tie the retaining rods in place as the cage model I bought is collapsible and some reviewers had problems with trapped animals prying the rods back out from their clips, collapsing the cage, then escaping post-successful-trap. I'm also pretty good at the bait and how & where I place that. In my experience I've had excellent results, but of course YMMV.

I, too, have had excellent luck with the Have-a-Heart traps. Over time I've probably caught a half a dozen raccoons with mine. None of them seemed to be rabid however I have experienced a few which were significantly more aggressive than others. I would've liked to have had the suggested trap with the larger sheet metal hand cover a few times, those little guys can really reach when they're pissed.

Re: AACO AC - when I called and my neighbors called they said they wouldn't come out unless we knew exactly where the animal was at that moment. Of course by the time we got to the phone he had wandered back off into the woods and they refused to dispatch. Yet when I did trap him and we did therefore know exactly where he was, they again refused and sent us to DNR, who sent us back to AC, who ... I spent probably an hour on the phone yesterday, between them and DNR. Sigh.

snallygaster said:

Burn it?

Click to expand...

FYI I've reached out to the County Executive's Office to see if they can facilitate someone coming out and picking up the animal.

But I still have an open question: Do any of you have recommendations for face masks that will provide better protection against localized air-borne transmission than the cheapo disposable dust masks? Surely someone on this forum has some experience in this area.

How did you get a rabid raccoon to go into the trap? They have no interest in food or scent when they have reached that stage. They are literally like zombies, except for the eating part. If it was rabid it was the "dumb" type. "Furious" type is when they try to bite and go after people and other animals. Distemper is another possibility. They will mope about and even go in circles and everyone will think they are rabid. With distemper their eyes may crust shut, or at least they will be weeping from the eyes. If it's distemper, it is not something humans can get, but cats and dogs can if not vaccinated. Raccoons can carry both feline and canine distemper.

I have handled buttloads of raccoons, foxes, groundhogs, etc. Any one of them could have been carrying rabies at the time, but not be symptomatic. I wear nitrile gloves at dispatch and handling and am just careful. I wear the gloves when skinning and have hand sanitizer bottles all over the place. I once had a raccoon in the front yard at my old place, that was under a bush at 11am, and growled at me as I walked by. I went and got the .22 and without thinking shot it in the head. It spazzed around like they always do throwing brain matter and blood all over. I had backed up of course. After it went still I had my gloves on and pulled it out, and took it to my shop porch. There was no sign of injury, so it must have been sick with rabies or something. Now here's the crazy part. I set it out on the porch for 2 days at maybe 40 degrees after consulting with veterinarian turned heavy duty trapper Bob Wendt ( kind of a long distance mentor). He said the rabies should be dead in 48 hours at that temp and should be safe to skin by then. LOL, yes I skinned it! Gloves on of course, plus other precautions. The fur was prime and season was still in. I think I bagged and froze the pelt and had it frozen for a while, then thawed and processed as usual.

Years ago, there was a skunk stumbling around our property, in daylight. It was in winter. It headed towards the neighbor, so I called them, and it was just the one lady home, but she came out with a .22 pistol and found it and shot it in the head from probably 20 feet away ( she's a good shot!). It didn't spray at all, they usually do with a head shot. So, here's where I started being crazy with furs. It had a beautiful pelt, so I wanted it. I used double gloves and skinned it. I think I stuck the carcass into an old groundhog hole, and put some big rocks over top. I let the skin hang a day or 2 before fleshing. When I skinned it I noted what looked like small puss filled tumors in one foot and in the tail. The foot had an open wound too. It may not have been rabid, but cancerous ,or poisoned by something that is long term and builds up. I still have the pelt and I am still here.

My suggestion is let it sit in the trap 48 hours, then bury it, and stick some big rocks on top of the mound. Clean the trap with a bleach water mix. Use a spray bottle, and spray the ground around the trap as well. The dust mask is probably overthinking. I don't know if rabies is airborne or not, I've never heard of it being that way. It's transmitted usually by a bite, with the saliva with the virus getting into the bloodstream. If you got no spray of saliva or blood or brain on you, before or during dispatch, you are ok. Once dead, nothing can spray off the animal.

Regarding the rabies pre vaccine, it's usually recommended for vets ,and busy nuisance trappers, esp those who handle bats. Nuisance trappers are more likely to come into contact with sick animals, as they can get calls to come get them removed, and the more business you have, the more calls you may get. Bats are the #1 carrier so anyone doing "a bat in my bedroom" calls or certain bat colony removals, puts them at an even higher risk. I don't do bats. You would still need a booster shot and/or to have the animal's brain examined, if you do get exposed through a bite or body fluids. Insurance doesn't pay for the pre-vaccine either, and it's can be costly.

Great write up.

Burn it. The heat will kill the virus. Make a nice funeral pyre like they did for Darth Vader in Return of the Jedi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49ypdyXN3RQ

I own the second respirator you linked. I got it from Amazon too. It's comfortable enough and forms a good seal. I used it when I was doing paint prep in my house since there is leaded paint. Those things are made to pass some sort of OSHA standard for keeping out particles. You won't want to wear it long but it will keep everything out of your airway. I don't think you need a full on Ebola suit for this. Gloves, respirator and fire will do it.

Hi foxtrapper; I was hoping you'd join the conversation! I always look forward to your posts and your experience. You have a lot of great stories which I have enjoyed many times.

From what I've read rabies has three stages: prodrome, excitative, and paralytic, all combined which can last up to 10 days. If this raccoon had rabies he was in the first stage which I'm told can last 3 days. We first noticed him right before noon on Saturday, so catching him Tuesday evening was right at the outer limit of that 3-day window. I agree had he moved fully into the furious (mad) stage the coon would have had no interest in food.

When I moved the cage to shoot him, I saw nothing wrong with his eyes. Of course I'm not a pro at this, but all of the DNR and AC folks I've spoken with so far agreed it was most likely rabies. Naturally the only way to be 100% sure is to have his brain tested.

One more comment: I usually shoot these things from 10 yards out. For this raccoon I backed that up to 20 yards, because like you said they always do that violent death roll or spaz when you hit them in the head. Thankfully because of Appleseed I'm more than competent enough to hit a raccoon brain-sized target from that distance every time, so I'll probably make that my default shooting distance henceforth just as a precaution.

UPDATE: As previously stated I called the AACO County Executive Office, who transferred me over to a constituent service representative. Animal Control Dispatch just called and they're going to send someone out tomorrow to collect the carcass. Problem solved! Go Steve Schuh!

Thanks for all the great info here. I also had the run around with DNR and animal control.

A Marylander, who received an organ transplant 18 months earlier, died a couple years ago from rabies. This means the incubation period, the time you are exposed to the disease until you have symptoms is well over a year, but it can be as short as a week.

The donor, a 20 yo air force man, from NC, died of "gastroenteritis and encephalitis" with no history of animal bites from his family. That wasn't quite true. He trapped and kept raccoons to train his coonhounds and had been bitten twice. Rabies was never suspected while he was alive. In the US we only have a couple cases a year.

Twenty years ago, there used to be places down south where you could take your dogs and, for a fee, run coons, foxes or coyotes. I don't know if they were legal then or now, but I'll bet these places still exist.

It has only been recently that people have survived rabies (that we know of, more later) and it is only a handful. In the developed world it is wildlife to human transmission. In the third world it is usually dog to human where it kills thousands of people. http://www.who.int/rabies/Global_distribution_risk_humans_contracting_rabies_2013.png?ua=1

In the US it is raccoons, bats, skunks, foxes and mongoose in that order, as transmitters of the disease.

Back to survival. Apparently vampire bats carry rabies in Peru. The CDC tested a group of 63 individuals. One was previously vaccinated 86% had a history of bat bites and 11% had rabies antibodies, which presumably means they survived rabies.

Interesting map pics in this article

I'd dig a hole in the woods and dump him out of the cage right into it. Maybe dump some mothballs in there so nothing wants to dig it up.

useful post and thanks. i had a ground hog problem and reduced it.

foxtrapper said:

How did you get a rabid raccoon to go into the trap? They have no interest in food or scent when they have reached that stage. They are literally like zombies, except for the eating part. If it was rabid it was the "dumb" type. "Furious" type is when they try to bite and go after people and other animals. Distemper is another possibility. They will mope about and even go in circles and everyone will think they are rabid. With distemper their eyes may crust shut, or at least they will be weeping from the eyes. If it's distemper, it is not something humans can get, but cats and dogs can if not vaccinated. Raccoons can carry both feline and canine distemper.

I have handled buttloads of raccoons, foxes, groundhogs, etc. Any one of them could have been carrying rabies at the time, but not be symptomatic. I wear nitrile gloves at dispatch and handling and am just careful. I wear the gloves when skinning and have hand sanitizer bottles all over the place. I once had a raccoon in the front yard at my old place, that was under a bush at 11am, and growled at me as I walked by. I went and got the .22 and without thinking shot it in the head. It spazzed around like they always do throwing brain matter and blood all over. I had backed up of course. After it went still I had my gloves on and pulled it out, and took it to my shop porch. There was no sign of injury, so it must have been sick with rabies or something. Now here's the crazy part. I set it out on the porch for 2 days at maybe 40 degrees after consulting with veterinarian turned heavy duty trapper Bob Wendt ( kind of a long distance mentor). He said the rabies should be dead in 48 hours at that temp and should be safe to skin by then. LOL, yes I skinned it! Gloves on of course, plus other precautions. The fur was prime and season was still in. I think I bagged and froze the pelt and had it frozen for a while, then thawed and processed as usual.

Years ago, there was a skunk stumbling around our property, in daylight. It was in winter. It headed towards the neighbor, so I called them, and it was just the one lady home, but she came out with a .22 pistol and found it and shot it in the head from probably 20 feet away ( she's a good shot!). It didn't spray at all, they usually do with a head shot. So, here's where I started being crazy with furs. It had a beautiful pelt, so I wanted it. I used double gloves and skinned it. I think I stuck the carcass into an old groundhog hole, and put some big rocks over top. I let the skin hang a day or 2 before fleshing. When I skinned it I noted what looked like small puss filled tumors in one foot and in the tail. The foot had an open wound too. It may not have been rabid, but cancerous ,or poisoned by something that is long term and builds up. I still have the pelt and I am still here.

My suggestion is let it sit in the trap 48 hours, then bury it, and stick some big rocks on top of the mound. Clean the trap with a bleach water mix. Use a spray bottle, and spray the ground around the trap as well. The dust mask is probably overthinking. I don't know if rabies is airborne or not, I've never heard of it being that way. It's transmitted usually by a bite, with the saliva with the virus getting into the bloodstream. If you got no spray of saliva or blood or brain on you, before or during dispatch, you are ok. Once dead, nothing can spray off the animal.

Regarding the rabies pre vaccine, it's usually recommended for vets ,and busy nuisance trappers, esp those who handle bats. Nuisance trappers are more likely to come into contact with sick animals, as they can get calls to come get them removed, and the more business you have, the more calls you may get. Bats are the #1 carrier so anyone doing "a bat in my bedroom" calls or certain bat colony removals, puts them at an even higher risk. I don't do bats. You would still need a booster shot and/or to have the animal's brain examined, if you do get exposed through a bite or body fluids. Insurance doesn't pay for the pre-vaccine either, and it's can be costly.

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Deerwoman, you are right on. Bob Wendt is an excellent source of great info and willing to talk to anyone. He told me twenty years ago that the rabbies virus dies at 67 degrees. At freezing temps it does not take long to cool down. In the mid forties it takes much longer. If you suspect a coon has rabbies, or any other animal for that matter, never shoot it in the head. Great write-up.

Paul