LAKELAND, Fla. — A raccoon has tested positive for rabies after a fight between the wild animal and a dog in Lakeland. It marks the first confirmed rabies case this year in Polk County.
Animal control officers responded Sunday to North Galloway Road, where the raccoon and an Alaskan husky mix were fighting. The dog's owner separated the animals. The raccoon died.
The raccoon's carcass was sent to a state laboratory in Tampa, where it was examined. It tested positive for rabies.
The dog is vaccinated and will be kept home under a 45-day quarantine.
“If you see a wild animal in distress, or if one of your pets interacts with a wild animal, contact Polk County Animal Control immediately," Sheriff Grady Judd wrote in an email.
There were 11 rabies cases countywide in 2019. Those involved five bats and six raccoons.
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