Province will drop 500K rabies vaccines to eliminate virus

Maple-scented, marshmallow-coated rabies vaccines will be distributed throughout New Brunswick this weekin a bid to eliminate the fatal, brain-altering virus.

Jim Goltz, the chief provincial veterinarian, saidraccoons, skunksand foxes quickly sniff out vaccine when it's encased in fat, marshmallow and sugar.

Two weeks after an animal bites into the capsule, which contains the human adenovirus type 5, "the body of that animal is fooled into thinking it's encountered the rabies virusand it has immunity against rabies."

The dull, olive-coloured baits are designed to blendinto the woods. But Goltz is asking people to leave the capsules alone if they find them.

While not harmful to pets or people, Goltz saidleaving them where they are ensures they will be eaten by one of the target species.

Vaccine baits dropped via aircraft,by hand

Specially-equipped aircraft are set to fly starting on Monday in lines along the western border of the province, distributing 500,000 vaccine baits at a rate of about 75 baits per square kilometre.

The drop routes are pre-programmed to avoid bodies of water and densely-populated areas. At about $2 per vaccine, the cost of the program is about $1 million.

"We want the baits to fall in places where the wild animals will find them," says Goltz.

"Within threeto fivedays, we will have covered a huge swath of about 5,000 square kilometres."

According to estimates, there are three to four raccoons in every square kilometre of wooded area.

While there's no similar estimate for urban areas in New Brunswick, Goltz saidsome have recorded more than 100 raccoons per square kilometre.

In densely-populated areas, the bait will be dropped by hand "in hedgerows, near dumpsters, in green spaces, and other places where the target species hang out."

Mid-August is the ideal time to start the program, saidGoltz, since at this point most young animals are eating on their own.

Program expanded this year

All 27 rabies cases confirmed in New Brunswick in 2015 were in Charlotte County.

Still, the prevention program has been expanded this year to include Fredericton, Saint John and Carleton County.

"We're looking at where rabies is occurring nearbyand we see that it's spreading northward. Some of the cases have been showing up very close to Vanceboro, Maine, and we don't want any more in our province."

South of the border, Goltz said, wildlife officials have "a whole different philosophy" when it comes to controlling rabies, focusing on preventing the spread of the virus rather than eliminating it.

He saidhe'd like to see more vaccine distribution along the Maine-New Brunswick border.

He saidthe number of reported cases indicates the success of the program so far.

"Last year, before we began anything, we had 24 cases in the entire year: this year so far, we've had one case detected in wild animals. That alone lets us understand that rabies vaccination is working," he said.

"We are going to have to continue this for several years, and carefully monitor what's going on adjacent to us in Maine, and also in our own province, to decide how much effort we have to put into this."