Virginia Administrative Code › Title 12 - HEALTH › Agency 5 - DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH › Chapter 105 - RABIES REGULATIONS › Section 12VAC5-105-10 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
The following words and terms when used in this chapter
				  shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates
				  otherwise:
"Currently vaccinated" means the animal was (i) vaccinated
				  by a licensed veterinarian or a licensed veterinary technician under the direct
				  supervision of a licensed veterinarian on the premises and (ii) the animal was
				  vaccinated and revaccinated in accordance with the current National Association
				  of State Public Health Veterinarian's Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention
				  and Control or as described on the U.S. Department of Agriculture approved
				  vaccine label. For the purposes of rabies exposure response and § 3.2-6522
				  of the Code of Virginia, an animal will not be considered currently vaccinated
				  until it has been at least 28 days since the initial vaccination and then
				  immediately after every subsequent vaccination.
"Department" means the Virginia Department of Health.
"Rabid animal" means an animal that has had the diagnosis of
				  rabies confirmed by the Virginia Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services,
				  Fairfax Health Department Laboratory, Centers for Disease Control and
				  Prevention Rabies Laboratory, or a laboratory in any state that is recognized
				  by that state to perform rabies testing for public health purposes. Any
				  suspected rabid animal that has exposed a companion or agricultural animal or a
				  person and is not available for laboratory testing should be presumed to be
				  rabid.
"Rabies exposure" or "exposed to rabies" means any
				  circumstance where saliva or central nervous system tissue from a rabid or
				  suspected rabid animal entered or could have entered a fresh, open wound or
				  come in contact with a mucous membrane of a person or susceptible species of
				  companion or agricultural animal. For the purposes of companion and
				  agricultural animal exposure, the actual witnessing of a bite or attack by a
				  rabid or suspected rabid animal is not necessary to define an exposure;
				  however, a rabid or suspected rabid animal needs to have been witnessed in
				  close proximity to the exposed animal and where, in the judgment of the local
				  health director or his designee, it is reasonable to assume that the rabid or
				  suspected rabid animal could have exposed the susceptible companion or
				  agricultural animal. The department should notify the Virginia Department of
				  Agriculture and Consumer Services when agricultural animals meet exposure
				  criteria and coordinate exposure response with that agency. This definition
				  notwithstanding, decisions regarding the disposition of animals housed or
				  maintained with an agricultural animal that is diagnosed with rabies shall be
				  at the discretion of the local health director.
"Rabies vaccination certificate" means a document provided
				  by a licensed veterinarian or a licensed veterinary establishment indicating a
				  specific animal has been vaccinated or revaccinated in accordance with the
				  National Association of State Public Health Veterinarian's Compendium of Animal
				  Rabies Prevention and Control or as described on the U.S. Department of
				  Agriculture approved vaccine label and includes at least, but is not limited
				  to, the following: signature of the veterinarian, the animal owner's name and
				  address, the locality where the animal resides, the species of the animal, the
				  sex, whether or not the animal is spayed or neutered, the age, the color, the
				  primary breed, the certificate expiration date, and the vaccination number,
				  also known as the serial lot number. In lieu of individual certificates, a herd
				  certificate can be issued for livestock other than horses that includes at
				  least the signature of the veterinarian, the owner's name and address, the
				  species of animal, the sex, the approximate age, the primary breed, date of
				  vaccination, the rabies vaccine product name, the vaccination number,
				  identifying information for each animal such as ear tag number, tattoo or other
				  permanent identification, and the name and contact information of the
				  veterinarian who administered the vaccine. In lieu of individual certificates,
				  a certificate of veterinary inspection for use in shipping equine may be
				  generated for horses that includes at least the signature of the veterinarian,
				  the owner's name and address, the sex, the approximate age, the date of
				  vaccination, the rabies vaccine product name, the vaccination number,
				  identifying information for each horse such as name, color, markings, tattoo or
				  brand, and the name and contact information for the veterinarian who
				  administered the vaccine.
"Suspected rabid animal" means any animal that has not been
				  tested for rabies and that the department considers to be a species at high
				  risk for acquiring or transmitting rabies whether or not the animal is
				  exhibiting clinical signs compatible with rabies and any animal the department
				  considers at low risk for acquiring or transmitting rabies that is exhibiting
				  clinical signs compatible with rabies. At the discretion of the local health
				  director, any animal to which an observation period will be applied that may
				  have bitten a person shall be considered a suspected rabid animal until the end
				  of the observation period. The status of animals for which an observation
				  period will not be applied or that the department has not identified as either
				  high or low risk for acquiring or transmitting rabies shall be at the
				  discretion of the local health director.
Statutory Authority: §§ 3.2-6521 and 32.1-12 of
					 the Code of Virginia; Chapter 834 of the 2010 Acts of
					 Assembly.