Abstract
By the late 2000s, Canada had successfully eliminated the incursion of racoon rabies from the south and remained free of this rabies variant from approximately 2009 to 2014. However, new incursions of raccoon rabies variant have recently been detected in three Canadian provinces: Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Actions to address previous and current incursions of this rabies variant include enhanced surveillance programs, a point infection control strategy to respond to cases, a trap-vaccine-release program and oral rabies vaccination campaigns in targeted areas to prevent further cases and spread. It is hard to predict when and where new incursions will appear because of the ecological adaptability of raccoons and the significant risk associated with inadvertent translocation events by vehicles, trains and ships and raccoon movements across bridges. To date, no cases of raccoon rabies variant have been detected in domestic animals in Canada. However, until racoon rabies can be pushed back from the Canadian border, it is important to remain prepared for the reappearance of this disease.
Highlights
Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick are the only three provinces in Canada to have experienced an incursion of raccoon rabies variant from the United States (US)
The objective of this paper is to describe how the initial incursion of racoon rabies was successfully addressed, its recent re-emergence in these three provinces and why it is important to manage this growing risk
Enhanced surveillance was developed to test for rabies in wildlife behaving abnormally or found dead, for incidents in which there was no known contact with humans or domestic animals
Summary
Quebec and New Brunswick are the only three provinces in Canada to have experienced an incursion of raccoon rabies variant from the United States (US). The first incursions in the late 1990s and early 2000s were successfully eliminated in all three provinces by 2009 and Canada remained free of this rabies variant until 2014. Racoon rabies has reappeared in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, and is present in a larger geographical area than previously. The objective of this paper is to describe how the initial incursion of racoon rabies was successfully addressed, its recent re-emergence in these three provinces and why it is important to manage this growing risk
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