Clinic targets Eddy Co. rabies outbreak

CARLSBAD, N.M. (KRQE) - Eddy County has confirmed almost as many rabies cases this month as in all of 2011 prompting a public vaccination clinic for cats and dogs to be held next week.

Carlsbad Animal Control and Desert Willow Veterinary Services are hosting the clinic on Feb. 11 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 512 Fiesta Dr. in Carlsbad.

The cost is $10 cash, and puppies and kittens must be at least 14 weeks old, the Carlsbad Police Department said in a statement released Tuesday.

One-year vaccines will be given unless the pet owner has a certificate of previous vaccination, in which case a three-year vaccine will be given.

Police report the county already has confirmed nine rabies cases this month compared to 11 in all of last year.

Most of the cases have involved house pets tangling with rabid skunks.

Eddy County Sheriff Ernie Mendoza had complained earlier that the public was ignoring warnings about rabid skunks and risked painful injections if they are exposed to the disease through their pets or livestock.

In July nine people living near Portales in Roosevelt County received the treatment injections for the disease after a rabid skunk attacked their unvaccinated dog.

And while rabies in livestock is not common, a horse near Artesia was put down after testing positive for the disease in August.