North Carolina petting zoo exposure leads to rabies vaccinations for hundreds
Three baby goats tested positive for rabies after a statewide tour, prompting health officials to evaluate nearly 300 visitors and advise over 200 to receive post-exposure vaccinations.
Health officials in North Carolina confirmed that three baby goats used in a mobile petting-zoo tour tested positive for rabies, and a fourth goat, though not tested, is presumed infected. All four animals, owned by Farm Adventures in Harmony, were euthanized.
The tour, which visited ten locations between July 28 and August 27, exposed an estimated 300 people to the virus. More than 200 of those individuals have been advised to begin the rabies vaccine series, according to state health authorities.
State investigators say a skunk entered the goats' pen in late July and likely transmitted the disease. Preliminary findings suggest no other farm animals pose a risk to the public.
"I think my thing is that if I were in their shoes and I had these animals that couldn’t be vaccinated, would I risk taking those out in public before they could be vaccinated?" – Kendal Britt, a resident who received the vaccine after contact with the goats.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that rabies spreads through bites, scratches or contact with infected saliva, and that human cases are extremely rare in the United States, with none reported in North Carolina since 2011. Prompt post-exposure vaccination is considered fully effective at preventing the disease.