Saw a sick raccoon this evening...

[Folly's place]

For animal testing, try your DNR; sometimes they will test sick/ dead raccoons, among other species, even without a human or pet contact. The body needs to be wrapped and refrigerated (cold box with ice) for testing.
Or, bury it very deep!
It's best to not leave it out there for other critters to feast on.
Rabies, canine distemper, or any other neurological problem, can look like anything! There's no 'magic presentation' that will differentiate these diseases, so only a pathology lab can deal with it.
Mary

 

[Eggsoteric]

Not a clue. But any mammalian vertebrate who is exposed to body fluids would be at risk, especially if the coon was rabid. I do hope you did not get any "spatters".

Per the CDC:

Rabies virus is transmitted through saliva and brain/nervous system tissue. Only these specific bodily excretions and tissues transmit rabies virus. If contact with either of these has occurred, the type of exposure should be evaluated to determine if postexposure prophylaxis is necessary.

Contact such as petting or handling an animal, or contact with blood, urine or feces does not constitute an exposure. No postexposure prophylaxis is needed in these situations.

Rabies virus becomes noninfectious when it dries out and when it is exposed to sunlight. Different environmental conditions affect the rate at which the virus becomes inactive, but in general, if the material containing the virus is dry, the virus can be considered noninfectious.

 

[happyfrenchman]

I would leave it at this point....or go get it myself. They are unlikely to rush out to remove it, and the cops may be more interested in why you capped it by the roadside....

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Just more reasons not to relocate coons, or any other wildlife for that matter. The coon in the opening post was most likely rabid. Old age in wild animals is almost never the cause of that animals' death. Rabies has several stages and rabies is almost never characterized by an all consuming irrational aggression.

 

[Eggsoteric]

Just more reasons not to relocate coons, or any other wildlife for that matter. The coon in the opening post was most likely rabid. Old age in wild animals is almost never the cause of that animals' death. Rabies has several stages and rabies is almost never characterized by an all consuming irrational aggression.

We currently have a cat (a feral that showed up some months ago and had just recently been coming into the barn to eat) that is currently under a 6-month, double-barrier quarantine because he showed up a few weeks back (after having disappeared for a little while) with an abscess that was determined to be an animal bite of unknown origin We were just gaining this cat's trust a little and were planning on trapping and having him neutered, however, had to step up the trapping when he showed up injured (and sick with a URI). He's currently living in a giant crate in our dairy building. When his quarantine is up next February and if he's shown no signs of rabies, we'll have him neutered at that time.