A factsheet on silo gases is also available. A warning has been issued by the Farm Safety Association after an Ontario farmer was attacked and killed by a rabid horse. Ontario has long been a hotbed of rabies in North America and farmers are asked to watch for the symptoms in any of their animals, and to take necessary precautions. Rabies is an infectious disease that can spread from animals to humans. The rabies virus causes the disease by infecting nerves in animals and people.
Wild animals are the major source of rabies.
The major risk of rabies comes from contact with the saliva, body fluids, or tissue of infected animals. Domestic animals and humans can be infected usually when bitten by a carrier of the disease. The animals may wander aimlessly and bite anything in their way. Domestic animals and pets should be vaccinated against rabies and kept from running free where contact can occur. Contact with wild animals, dead or sick animals should be avoided.