WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Wichita Falls Animal Services, as part of their ongoing pet ordinance campaign, is making sure the community knows what’s in line with the ordinance and what’s not.

Animal Services Administrator Nicki Bacon stopped by our noon show to talk about some of the public nuisance parts of the ordinance.

[00:00:00] Carney Porter: Wichita Falls Animal Services, as part of their ongoing pet ordinance campaign, is making sure we know what’s in line with the ordinance and what’s not. And this month, it’s all about rabies vaccinations. And here to tell us all about it is Animal Services Administrator Nicki Bacon. Thank you for joining us today. [00:00:15][14.9]

Nicki Bacon: Thank you for having me. So, yeah, this month we’re talking about rabies vaccinations. And the reason why we are pinpointing on rabies vaccination is because a lot of people just think that, Oh, why does my dog need to get this? The simple answer is to think of it as a pre-exposure to rabies because we do have animals, wild animals here that do carry strains of rabies. The most prevalent is in skunks, here in Texas. We have had, in recent years, domesticated cats that have tested positive for rabies as well as livestock.

So a vaccination for rabies is a pre-exposure vaccination, so it helps them build those antibodies against rabies. And if they are ever bitten by a rabid animal, it gives them a better shot at making it through. So if they’re bitten, they can also be given their post-exposure. And rabies is almost 99% fatal once symptoms start.

So Texas law, plus our city law, requires that all dogs and cats, four months, 16 weeks and older, have a vaccination against rabies. And that can either be your one or your three-year. And then we also include ferrets in that because they can contract rabies as well. So it’s just important to make sure you’re watching your animals.

Your top five rabies carriers are skunks, coyotes, bats, raccoons, which everybody loves raccoons, and foxes. So make sure you stay away from them. And if there’s ever a bat in your home, they’re tiny. You can’t feel those bites. Or if they’re in the backyard.

Carney Porter: So make sure you’re on the lookout. Absolutely. Make sure you check out all of this info on our website. We’ll have it there for you. Thank you so much for joining us.