[News Terms] Rabies Bait Vaccine That Should Not Be Touched by Hand

Seoul City Sprays Twice Annually in Spring and Fall Since 2006
Safe for Dogs and Cats to Eat, Ineffective if Touched by Human Hands

The 'rabies bait vaccine' is an oral vaccine designed to prevent rabies transmitted through wild animals such as raccoons. The vaccine is placed inside bait made of fish cake, and when wild animals like raccoons eat the bait, the vaccine is absorbed through the gum mucosa, inducing immunity.

Rabies (狂犬病·Rabies) is a viral zoonotic disease that causes acute brain disease in most mammals, including humans, and is a fatal disease that leads to death in most cases once symptoms appear. It is mainly transmitted through bites from infected dogs or cats, but can also be transmitted by raccoons, foxes, badgers, skunks, raccoons, and bats.

It is also called hydrophobia (fear of water) because infected individuals fear water. Not only water, but sounds and wind can also stimulate the sensory organs of the patient and cause convulsions. Animals infected with rabies drool excessively and exhibit abnormal aggressive behavior. Most countries mandate rabies vaccination for pets to prevent transmission to humans through pets.

Rabies is not transmitted between humans except in special cases such as organ transplants. In South Korea, a farmer in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, died of rabies in 2002 after being bitten by a dog that had contact with a wild raccoon, but there have been no human cases since 2005.

Due to concerns about transmission to pets from wild raccoons, bait vaccines began to be distributed. Since rabies was detected in wild raccoons captured in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul in 2006, the city has distributed rabies bait vaccines for wild animals twice a year in spring and autumn, and no cases of rabies have occurred since then.

The bait vaccine has been proven safe through safety tests on about 60 species of animals. It is safe even if pets such as dogs or cats consume it, but for accurate rabies prevention, it is better to have pets vaccinated at animal hospitals.

On the 17th, Seoul announced that it will distribute 37,000 'rabies bait vaccines' in the outskirts of the city until November 30 to prevent rabies. The distribution locations include Bukhansan, Dobongsan, Suraksan, Bulamsan, Gwanaksan, Yongmasan, Umyeonsan, as well as Yangjaecheon, Tancheon, Anyangcheon, and Uicheon. To form a dense quarantine zone, the vaccines will be distributed along the Seoul city boundary at intervals of 50 to 100 meters, with 15 to 20 baits per point over a total distance of 157 km.

Seoul has posted banners and warning signs at locations where bait vaccines are distributed to prevent citizens from touching the bait vaccines. If a person touches the bait vaccine, their scent may transfer to the bait, causing wild animals to avoid eating it, and occasionally itching or other symptoms may occur.

When hiking with pets, they must be kept on a leash and prevented from contacting wild animals. If a pet comes into contact with an animal suspected of having rabies, it should be reported to quarantine authorities and treated at an animal hospital. If a person is bitten by a wild animal or an animal suspected of having rabies, the wound should be washed with soapy water for more than 15 minutes and medical attention should be sought immediately.