Rabies case shows need for trap-neuter-vaccinate in Polk
After reading the article entitled “Two people exposed to rabies by cat in first 2025 case, Polk Sheriff’s Office reports” [Oct. 17], I am compelled to ask the question, why is it that Sheriff Judd eschews Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return programs?
Vaccinating these cats against rabies creates a barrier to the disease between wild animals and domestic pets and people.
An article entitled “Response of Feral Cats to Vaccination at the Time of Neutering,” published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2007, concludes that “Vaccination of feral cats at the time of neutering may protect them for much of their remaining life span because immunity that develops following vaccination has been shown to persist for a minimum of 3 to 7 years in most cats.” The same article reported that 98% of the cats in the study developed protective titers of serum antibodies against rabies virus…