Caught hunting on my property.

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Originally Posted by smitty55

I have shot many myself with shorts so I can speak from experience. My comment was in response to snowwalker's "lights out" . Sure often they drop in their tracks or don't go too far, but they can also travel a fair piece before expiring. All were head shots, maybe my rounds were too old or maybe there was shooter error from having to rush a shot and it was a carom... don't matter, they still died.

Good shootin' btw. I'm not sure what that sickness is but I saw it up close last year when a bud up the road gave me a call one evening. He had one wandering around the house and garage area in the middle of the day barely even able to walk. It was in real bad shape when I went over, the short did it's work.

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What coons have when they are acting that way, disoriented , stumbling and such, showing no signs of aggression, is canine/feline distemper.

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Originally Posted by jaycee

What coons have when they are acting that way, disoriented , stumbling and such, showing no signs of aggression, is canine distemper.

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Coons can also get Feline distemper, but signs are the same.

Raccoon Distemper
Next to humans, the second leading cause of death of raccoons is distemper. [B]Raccoons are susceptible to infection by both canine and feline distemper. Although they both can cause acute illness and death, they are caused by two completely different viruses. Canine Distemper is a a highly contagious disease of carnivores caused by a virus that affects animals in the families Canidae, Mustelidae and Procyonidae. Canine distemper is common when raccoon populations are large. The virus is widespread and mortality in juveniles is higher than in adults. Feline distemper, also called feline panleukopenia, catplague, cat fever, feline agranulocytosis, and feline infectious enteritis, is an acute, highly infectious viral disease affecting members of the Felidae, Mustelidae and Procyonidae.

Signs and Symptoms
Canine distemper in raccoons starts slowly, initially appearing as an upper respiratory infection, with a runny nose and watery eyes developing into conjunctivitis (the most visible symptoms). As time wears on, the raccoon can develop pneumonia. The raccoon may be thin and debilitated and diarrhea is a clear symptom. In the final stage of the disease, the raccoon may begin to wander aimlessly in a circle, disoriented and unaware of its surroundings, suffer paralysis or exhibit other bizarre behaviour as a result of brain damage. Many of these symptoms are indistinguishable from, and therefore often mistaken for, the signs of rabies which can only be determined by laboratory testing. Raccoon distemper is cyclical and can spread and wipe out entire colonies of raccoons. The disease is transmitted through airborne droplets, direct contact with body fluids, saliva or raccoon droppings. Feline distemper usually begins suddenly with a high fever, followed by depression, vomiting, anorexia, diarrhea, and a profound leukopenia. The course of the disease is short, rarely lasting over one week, but mortality may reach 100% in susceptible animals. Feline distemper virus is shed in all body secretions and excretions of affected animals. Fleas and other insects, especially flies, may play a role in transmission of the disease

Treatment
No treatment exists for canine or feline distemper (thereby increasing the need for prevention and control). Infected raccoons are usually euthanized. Control of distemper outbreaks includes the removal of dead animals' carcasses, vaccination of at-risk domestic species to decrease the number of susceptible hosts, and a reduction in wildlife populations which also reduces the number of potential hosts. The canine distemper virus is inactivated by heat, formalin,and Roccal R. Disinfection of premises with a dilution of 1.30 bleach will help to reduce spread.

Prevention
Unvaccinated dogs and cats that are allowed to wander unattended are at risk of infection from, as well as posing a risk of infection to, raccoons and other wildlife. Humans are not at risk from distemper as the disease cannot be passed on to people and presents no danger to humans. Dog and cat owners should make sure their pets have been vaccinated for the disease. Owners of pet ferrets should have their animals vaccinated against canine distemper which is fatal in ferrets. Wildlife rehabbers should quarantine any new rehabs until they get a clean bill of health and should have the animals vaccinated against both canine and feline distemper.

I got 2 this spring I figure were distemper. Couldn't tell you if humans can get it or not, but I sure won't touch one after it is dispatched.

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Originally Posted by sabmgb

I got 2 this spring I figure were distemper. Couldn't tell you if humans can get it or not, but I sure won't touch one after it is dispatched.

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Yes you can get infected with distemper, but you will not get sick you will be a carrier. If you have had measles or the Vaccine for measles, then you are vaccinated against both distemper and measles. Yes you can even protect a dog from distemper by giving it a "Human" Measles vaccine.

Well it seems they gave up having seen any new holes since I cam back on last Saturday. I just put the Trail cam out tonight. Got something really good to take care of them now.