The Monmouth County Health Department of Health is looking for anyone who was bitten by a family's dog in Aberdeen, after it tested positive for rabies.

Three people who were bitten by the dog have been identified, to the health department,  which said the dog did not have a current rabies vaccination.

Several dogs that also came in contact with the dog while it was shedding are also being monitored according to the health department.

“We are asking that anyone in the Aberdeen area who was bitten or exposed to this family pit bull, contact the health department immediately,” Christopher Merkel, Monmouth County public health coordinator, said. “We are currently working to identify anyone who may have come in contact with this dog in the last three weeks.”

Merkel said the last reported case of rabies in a dog in Monmouth County was in 2008 while 10 cats have been diagnosed in the past 5 years.

The health department said there are several steps residents can take to reduce the risk to rabies:

  • Avoid wildlife and animals you do not know.
  • Keep your pet on a leash. Do not allow your pet to roam; it can come in contact with rabid wildlife.
  • Never feed or touch wild or stray animals, especially stray cats, bats, skunks, raccoons, foxes or groundhogs.
  • Teach your children that they should tell you if they were bitten or scratched by an animal.
  • Call your doctor and the local health department if bitten or exposed to saliva or blood of a wild or stray animal.
  • Contact your veterinarian if your pet was exposed to a bat, raccoon, skunk or other wild carnivore.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the presence of rabies in animals may be indicated by unprovoked aggression, impaired movement, paralysis, lack of coordination, unusually friendly behavior and/or disorientation.

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