How come diseases such as rabies flare up once in a while, then kind of remain

[raccoon]

quiet for a while?

[hlthe2b]

1. What you perceive as a "flare up"

is simply the movement into the peridomestic areas. Rabies remains endemic in US wildlife, raccoons, fox, skunks, bats, depending on the area. It is when infected wildlife move closer into urban areas, infecting domestic animals (pets, livestock) that you perceive a "flare up" because humans are at immediate risk. In many areas of the world feral dogs are a continuous problem, just as coyotes were in South Texas until a massive bait vaccination program was put into place.

Rabies never goes away--worldwide and certainly not in the continental US. A few areas have managed to maintain a rabies-free state, including wildlife for many decades, including Great Britain, Hawaii, Australia, several Pacific islands. However, it is contained, not eradicated, since re-introductions are always possible.

[Denninmi]

2. Because Sarah, Beck, and Rush are all touring and spreading it???

????

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. Funny a raccoon should ask this. :^D

[raccoon]

4. I thought of that...after I posted.

I thought I'd read somewhere that some other kind of animal, skunks, foxes, whatever, was more likely to have rabies
than raccoons do nowadays, but I can't find it.

I did find this:


Types of Rabid Animals Within the United States

The four most common terrestrial reservoir species harboring rabies in the U.S. are: raccoons, skunks, foxes and coyotes. In addition to these terrestrial, indigenous rabid bats have been found in every state except Hawaii.


Rabies in People (This blew my mind!)

Worldwide: At least 50,000 humans develop rabies each year. The overwhelming majority of cases occur in areas where dog rabies is common.


http://www.publichealth.lacounty.gov/vet/rabiesmanual/introduction.htm

[GreenPartyVoter]

5. Rabies is so scary because by the time you realize you have it, it's too late to help you.