Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1916-02-18
TMHNTY.sIx NOW
UNDER TREATMENT

OSO4N sNAn T'bAIyus
Rabies In State Requires Unusual
Precautions. Says State Board
of Health.
Richmond, Va, February 16.-I
(Special) Twenty-six persons are
now taken State treatment to pre-
vent rabies and the number is IT,
creasing so rapidly that the State !
Board of Health, according to an
official announcement today, regards
unusual and far-reaching precau-
tons as necessary to prevent the
| spread of the disease.
Some of the recent cases arriving
here for treatment at the State lab
oratory show. in the judgment of the
board. why town and city councils,
as we'll as county boards of super
visors, should act promptly to have
dogs muzzled or kept on the
premises.
i Four patients at the laboratory
| are from the same southside town,
where a mad-dog made its appear
ance some days ago. The dog bit
two negroes before the alarm was
spread and then set on man who
was one of crowd seaching for the
dog in order to kill it. The man
was armed but could not shoot the
! dog for fear of injuring someone in
, the crowd. AS a result he was bit
ten, as was child. before the dog
t was finally dispatched.
i The council of the town took
S prompt action and passed an ordi-
!, nance requiring that all dogs should
e either be muzzled or kept on the
premises of their owners. Dogs al
p lowed in the streets unmuzzled are
r killed and the owners. in addition,
are fined ten dollars.
: Another case now at the State
o laboratory comes from the western
v part of the State. He is the head
r OF a family and happened to be
J, near at hand when a mad dog at.
o tempted to bite two of his children.
Y The man drove off the dog. but was
81 bitten in the encounter. AS his
), children were alone at the time, he
e could not Immediately follow the
# dog. 1t is feared that after the dog
G was beaten off he may have attack
e ed other dogs which will develop
d rabies.
rl Two other cases-one from north.
j. ern Virginia and the other from the
= southside-were bitten by animals
is which were killed and were found
upon examination, to be suffering
from rabies.
These and other recent arrivals a
the State laboratory bring the mum
d Der now under treatment to twenty
Y, six almost as many as the Stat,
ID has had to treat at any one tim,
If since it began to administering thu
anti rabic virus free of cost to per
o sons to whom the charges of thu
:. Pasteur Institutes would be hard
70 ship.
These cases and reports of mac
! dogs found in other sections of the
> State says the weekly bulletin Of
: the board today, makes it plair
that rabies will steadily increase anc
that much valuable stock will have
to be killed unless precautions are
taken. In addition, many persons
" will have to leave home and undergo
the expense of three weeks resi-
ldence in Richmond to save them
j selves from the ravages of this fear
lful disease.
h The State is powerless to do
o Anything to prevent the spread of
this disease where the local author
h tiles fail to exercise their legal
rights in protecting citizens against
Irabid animals. The safe course is
1t! e simplest to order all dogs muz-
zed or confined in every district
! where there is the least reason to
believe that rabid animals may be
at large. Experience has shown
. that it is usually the stray dog"
which is responsible for the spread
Iof rabies"