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by cows which increases milk production. ant bovine somatotropin (rbST) is a syn- wet which is virtually identical to the natu- ponse to recommendations made last year by ing Committee on Agriculture and Agri force was established to provide more in- ible impact of rbST. It reported eaning ---- | | Seed Wheat | | --Hay & Pasture Seed-- | | Call905 | 986-4331 Blackstock Rentals now RR. available It's Easy To Get Attached To A Bobcat WeTo {e [34] 753 Bobcat" Skid-Steer Loaders Feature: Excellent breakout c1ce and quick 1300 Ib. rated capacity | | ycjer Cycle time JTpassed service 40 hp liquid-cooled a Np ae diesel engine 1ccess The bBOos socal Lperahio Sensing Syste which. dlettsineopent 763 free hanced. malunchons Petote t recome costly bread "wns push 1500 Ib raed capuciy SIRS SE a (1600 Ib. with optional x 1 il 1 dA Lib aly yale sid Supe 10 plus versatile aliaohinenis and 46 hp liquid-cool rianal homed contol diesel engine 773 1700 Ib roted capac (1800 Ib with ophona terweight kit pri re led diesel engine 853 1700 Ib rated copacity 58 hp hqud cooled diesel engine 1 La | See Your Bobcat Dealer UTICA FARM EQUIPMENT LIMITED 2 miles west of Manchester on Durham 21 985-9701 *_, FARM & RURAL LIFE ~~ THE PORT PERRY STAR Program aims to wipe out rabies From Page 1 to eliminate rabies in fox- es by the year 2000. While that may sound incredi- ble, he says eastern Onta- rio is currently rabies-free thanks to baiting pro- grams that started In 1989. And in just two years here, the incidence of ra- bies has dropped dramati- cally. Alex Connor of the Durham Region Health Unit says in 1993 there were 90 confirmed rabid animals -- eight were cows -- but only 23 (three of them cows) in 1994, the lowest level since 1961. And for the first four months of 1995, there have only been two con- firmed cases, a cow and a skunk. Ontario is the rabies capital of Canada, with 85 per cent of all rabid ani- mals found here.. Of Onta- trio's roughly 1,500 con- firmed rabid animals each year, foxes and skunks make up 66 per cent of the yearly count, cattle 19 per cent, with dogs and cats to- gether accounting for 10 per cent. "It is almost always cats or dogs who infect people," says Connor. Statistics show that a rabies infect- ed cat or dog will have con- tact with 11 people. On av- erage, 1,200 people in Durham each year believe they had contact with rab- id animals. But less than 100 of those received the five shot post-exposure in- oculations. The 15 to 30 needles in the stomach regime is long past, and the new treat- ment is relatively painless and highly effective if giv- en within a few days after exposure. Rabies has been long evoked fear and misunder- standing. The graphic ra- bies symptoms -- fearful- ness, foaming at the mouth and uncontrollable rage -- have been recorded as far back as 3,800 BC in Mesopotamia. Until the French doctor Louis Pas- teur developed the first anti-rabies vaccine In 1885, it was a significant cause of mortality. In some areas, as many as one out of every 10 deaths resulted from bites by rab- 1d dogs. Medically, rabies 1s an acute infectious viral en- cephalitis (brain infec- tion). A relatively simple bullet-shaped virus, it 1s transmitted in the saliva of an infected animal. But its symptoms are not evi- dent for six or more weeks. During that time, a bite, scratch or even saliva In an open wound will pass the disease along to other animals, and to people. The symptoms include unusual behavior -- ag- gression or passivity -- and progressive paralysis. Once symptoms appear, the result is always death in animals and humans. Unfortunately, there are no blood tests that can detect the presence of the virus. Any suspect animal must be kept in quaran- tine for three or more months and closely watched for any symp- toms. Otherwise, the only means of confirmation is to kill the animal and ex- amine its brain for signs of infection. Since the baits MNR will drop also contain the live rabies virus, Powers advises farmers to wear gloves if they need to get them out of the way. "Just throw them into the bush or along a fence line," he says. As for dog or a cats eat- ing the bait, it won't harm them. In fact, most dogs will get the equivalent of a | DRAINAGE INC. * Systems planning e Land cleaning *Root raking Land levelling e Grassed waterways © Excavating ® Laser controlled installation L.1.C.O. Member ~ Free Estimates ROY (705) 324-9500 - LINDSAY, ONT. Fax (705) 324-8469 rabies shot that way. Pow- ers cautions this 1s not a reliable way for a dog to get its yearly vaccination. Farmers should also be on the lookout for rabid skunks this fall and win- ter, because the bait vac- cine doesn't work on any other animals. But since foxes infect skunks, the vi- rus should decline among that population a well. And just when 1t looks like rabies is going to be licked, a new type of ra- bies, called raccoon rabies, is knocking at the door. Raccoons in New York State are infected with this new strain, which 1s highly infectious; current- ly, Ontario's raccoons rarely get rabies. Ontario border patrols are on alert and MNR has put out hundreds of traps laid around the bridges to New York State along On- tario's Niagara River, and at all the bridges across the St. Lawrence River. By catching and vaccinat- ing 60 per cent of all rac- coons around the bridge- heads, they'll build a sort of immunization wall to keep the disease out of the province. Despite these efforts, Rick Rosatte, Research Scientist at the Rabies Unit, says raccoon rabies will be a reality in Ontario by 1997, if not before then. But raccoons are unlikely to infect people directly; cats will be the bridge be- tween raccoons and hu- mans. Already, more cats have rabies than any oth- er domesticated animal, since they are less likely to be vaccinated. Connor says Durham health authorities and MNR have been preparing for the raccoon rabies In- vasion for a couple of years now. They will implement programs that will limit the spread of the disease. These will include aerial bait drops similar to those for foxes. Unfortunately, a bait vaccine that works on raccoons has not been de- veloped yet. Until the invasion be- gins, Durham farms may enjoy a brief respite from the worry of rabies. So when the big yellow planes roar overhead, a friendly wave would be ap- preciated. "Thankfully," Powers says, "no one has shot at us yet." bies, he says. the virus." says Ingwersen. Protect pets from the deadly virus "Report any bite or scratch from any animal to your doctor as soon as possible," says Dr. Ingwersen, Presi- dent of the Ontario Veterinary Medicine Association and a veterinarian at the MacKay Animal Clinic in Whitby. Time is of the essence when it comes to ra- "Washing the wound immediately and thoroughly can make a big difference in reducing the spread of Since most human contact with rabid animals comes from domestic animals, annual vaccinations are a key to controlling outbreaks of the disease. For thatreason,Ingwersen says. "The current rabies vaccine will safeguard animals from the raccoon rabies strain but there is a signifi- cant number of dogs and cats that go unvaccinated," Farmers Market at Port Perry Fairgrounds Saturday 8:00am to 1:00pm Field Tomatoes, Fresh Ontario Potatoes, Pickling Cucumbers VENDORS WELCOME please call 985-8044, Whitney or Bill Cohoon Member of Durham Region Farm Fresh Marketing Association N Dy wna apa mess oa