Rabies surveillance in BC Melissa McLaws, DVM, PhD 14 th Zoonoses Symposium November 10, 2015

Outline  Rabies: surveillance and response in BC  Results from 2015  Case Studies: Theresa Burns

Acknowledgements  BCCDC: Drs. Eleni Galanis, Jennifer Koeman  Ministry of Agriculture: Drs. Brian Radke, Jane Pritchard  Ministry of Environment: Dr. Helen Schwantje  College of BC Veterinarians: Dr. John Brocklebank  Centre for Coastal Health: Drs. Theresa Burns and Tyler Stitt  Colleagues in other provinces....

Rabies  Rabies virus, Rhabdovirus family  Zoonotic  Transmitted between mammals, through saliva or nervous tissue, usually by a bite  Almost all human cases from dog bites

Rabies  Deadliest disease on earth: 99.9% fatality rate  ~59,000 human deaths/year,  about 60% of these in children under 5 years  About 95% human deaths in Africa and Asia

Rabies in BC In BC, bats are only known reservoir Other parts of Canada also have fox, skunk, raccoon 4-8% of submitted bats test positive Less than 0.5% all bats positive Others mammals infected with bat variant virus Cats, horse, skunk, beaver  1 human case in BC, 2003

Consult BCCDC Public Health Vet Yes NO Veterinary Assessment Possible rabid animal (bat, other wildlife, domestic animal) Human contact?Human and animal contact? Domestic animal contact Refer human to health authority If bat/wildlife available, consult wildlife vet

Yes NO Suspect animal available for testing? VACCINATE Up-to-date on vaccinesVaccinated: out of date Never vaccinated No further action Negative Domestic animal exposure? Submit to CFIA for testing Veterinary public health management Positive Vaccination status? Yes

Rabies in BC * ** * 1 cat 2007 ** 4 skunks 2004

2015 results: Calls  107 calls January-October  Suspect animal:  72 bats, 10 cats, 12 dogs, 7 raccoons  54% of calls were “a cat caught a bat”  70% calls from vet clinics Vaccination Status

2015 results: Laboratory SpeciesNegPosUnsuitableTotal BAT BOVINE11 CAT12 COYOTE11 DOG55 HUMAN11 RACCOON11 Total

2015 results: Laboratory ContactNegPosUnsuitableTotal Animal Both Human21324 None459 Total Reason for Submission

2015 results: Laboratory Lab result  Negative  Positive  Unsuitable

Discussion  Intersection of human and animal health  Puppies/kittens too young for vaccination  Exposures with wildlife other than bats:  Raccoons, skunks, squirrels

Discussion  Apparent low vaccination coverage in dogs and cats  Cost  Anti-vaccine?  Risk perception  Owners and vets RISK Probability Consequences RISK Probability Consequences

More than rabies…  Animals as sentinels for human health risks  Reportable zoonoses  Anaplasmosis, blastomycosis, leptospirosis, echinococcus, balisascaris….  Data: pets, wildlife (incl urban), livestock…  Food safety issues  Salmonella spp  Urban agriculture  ….

Thank you for the attention! Any questions?