Second rabid raccoon found in Westlake Village Play

A second rabid raccoon has turned up in Westlake Village, with a strain of rabies that can be transmitted to humans and dogs by raccoons, skunks and other wild animals in the Santa Monica Mountains.

This raccoon was aggressive when it was encountered last week, unlike the first raccoon, which was docile when construction workers came across it the week before.

Rabies exposures in Los Angeles County are predominantly associated with contact with bats, L.A. County officials said Friday. The area has seen a steady upward trend for more than a decade.

Peak season typically occurs in late summer, but bats with rabies can be found year-round. So far this year, there has been a record-breaking 77 rabid bats confirmed in Los Angeles County.

"Never touch a bat or any wild animal and never allow pets to interact with them," warned the L.A. County Department of Public Health Friday. "Even small or unnoticed bites can transmit rabies."

A variant strain of rabies carried by bats is endemic in Southern California, but the skunk strain is very rare. There was an outbreak from 1973 to 1979, but other than one skunk rabies case in Long Beach in 2014, it had disappeared.

The variant carried by dogs has been eradicated in North America, but still exists in some undeveloped countries. But dogs and cats can be infected by bats or raccoons.

"Vaccinate your pets, even indoor only cats."

That is the urgent recommendation from Public Health. Rabies is 100% fatal in animals once symptoms begin, but completely preventable through vaccination.

This includes vaccinating indoor-only cats and older pets, and ensuring your pets stay current on their rabies vaccine. Protecting your pets from rabies is one of the best ways to protect your whole family, they say.

Although it is preventable, rabies causes tens of thousands of human deaths globally each year, with most human cases linked to exposure to dogs in countries where the dog strain of rabies is still present.

While the dog strain of rabies was eradicated in the United States through routine vaccination of pets, other strains of rabies continue to circulate in wildlife, including bats. All strains can infect any mammal and cause disease.