Three adults and five children bitten or scratched by a rabid kitten are undergoing rabies treatments in Larimer County, and the kitten has been euthanized, state health officials say.
It was the first time since 1968 that the Larimer County Department of Health and Environment confirmed a cat was infected with rabies, according to a department bulletin.
Born to an unvaccinated barn cat north of Fort Collins, the kitten bit a veterinarian while being examined for neurological problems, the bulletin said. The kitten was euthanized and sent to the CSU Veterinary Diagnostic Lab, which confirmed it had rabies.
"This situation clearly demonstrates that leaving barn cats and livestock unvaccinated — especially those in close contact with people — puts family members, friends and animal health professionals at risk of infection," said department director Dr. Adrienne LeBailly.
Six other unvaccinated cats on the same property were vaccinated. The property owners cannot move livestock from their land for 90 days, the bulletin said.
Since May 2012, when skunks surpassed bats as the most common source of rabies in Larimer County, rabies has also been confirmed in raccoons, foxes and bison. Several horses in Colorado have died of rabies, the closest a horse on the border between Weld and Larimer counties in June.
"The number and location of the positive animals isn't as important as knowing that skunk rabies is now widespread along the Front Range and nearby foothills of Larimer County," LeBailly said.
The risk of domestic animals being exposed to rabies increased significantly in May 2012 when rabid skunks became common in Larimer County, she said. Rabies in ground-dwelling animals increases the risk of rabies exposure to pets, livestock and humans.
Thirty-two animals have been confirmed to have rabies in Larimer County this year.
Rabies in domestic animals is rare, according to a 2009 report by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. In a period of a decade, there were more than twice as many cats with rabies as dogs in the U.S., with between 200 and 300 cats infected and fewer than 100 dogs, the report said.
During the 30 years before the report, only four domestic animals in Colorado, including one dog in El Paso County in 1974, were found to be positive for rabies. In 1985, a bat infected a cat in Grand County, the Colorado health report said.
A Pueblo man was recently hospitalized for rabies treatment after being bitten by a rabid bat, the Pueblo Chieftain reported, citing information from the Pueblo City-County Health Department.