A rabies epidemic in recently captured skunks.

ABSTRACT

An epidemic of rabies occurred within a colony of captive skunks (Mephitis mephitis). One of the animals has been infected with the virus in the wild and developed clinical illness near 7 weeks after capture. She transmitted the virus to three of her five offspring and one other adult. The disease spread to additional skunks when orphaned infants were adopted by lactating females. Although the animals were in close contact with each other, the epidemic spread slowly. Furious rabies generally did not occur and frequently rabid skunks were found dead without any clinical signs of the disease having been observed.