06/20/2024 | News release | Archived content
PUBLIC NOTICE: Revised Tioga County Rabies Control Order for Unrestricted Public Contact
Last Updated: 6/20/2024
The following is the revised Tioga County Rabies Control Order for Unrestricted Public Contact which was approved as written by the Tioga County Board of Health today, June 20, 2024.
This Order will be posted for public comment for fourteen (14) days prior to its final acceptance.
Please email any comments or questions regarding the revised Order to [email protected].
RABIES CONTROL for UNRESTRICTED PUBLIC CONTACT
PREAMBLE
On May 20, 1999 the Tioga County Board of Health adopted Board of Health Order 599, which set forth the rules and regulations for Exhibitors seeking to exhibit mammals to the public.
This Board of Health Order is adopted to continue the protections offered to the public by Board of Health Order 599, when public contact is not restricted.
Under this Order, the Exhibitor may allow unrestricted public contact and must comply with all the rules set forth to exhibit.
I. DEFINITIONS
For this Board of Health Order, the following definitions must be used:
Mammals - All mammalian species excluding humans and small rodents such as Rabbits, Mice, Rats, Guinea Pigs, Hamsters, Gerbils, Chinchilla, Squirrels, and Chipmunks.
Domestic Mammals - Mammals living closely in the care of humans. Domestic mammals include livestock and pets such as Dogs, Cats.
Domestic Livestock -Mammals commonly cared for in agricultural settings to provide food, fiber and to be beasts of burden for humans. Cattle, Horses, Donkeys, Mules, Sheep, Goats, Pigs, Llamas, Alpacas and other domestic Cervidae are commonly described as domestic livestock.
Wild Mammals (Wildlife, Undomesticated Mammals) - Mammals that live independently of humans, usually in natural conditions.
Captive Wildlife - Wild Mammal species being confined by licensed wildlife rehabilitators, zoos, and other wildlife exhibitors where no direct contact with the public is allowed.
Nervous tissue - Tissue that makes up the nervous system. The nervous system includes the brain, spinal cord and the peripheral nerve system.
Contact - Direct Contact between a human and or another mammal with the mouth, saliva, or nervous tissue of another mammal.
On-Label Rabies Vaccination - USDA licensed rabies vaccine administered by a licensed veterinarian, or licensed veterinary technician under the supervision of a licensed veterinarian, to domestic mammal species approved on the manufacturer's label.
Off-Label Rabies Vaccination - USDA licensed rabies vaccine administered by a licensed veterinarian, or licensed veterinary technician under the supervision of a licensed veterinarian, to a domestic mammal species not approved on the manufacturer's label.
Proof of Rabies Vaccination - A statement signed by the licensed veterinarian administering or supervising the administering of rabies vaccine. The following information must be included: name and address of the owner/exhibitor, vaccinated mammal's identification, species, date vaccine administered, age, name of product used, type of vaccine administered, and duration of immunity. The statement must also include the name, address, and license number of the veterinarian signing the statement.
The proof of rabies vaccination for domestic livestock may include multiple animals on a single form but only one species per form. The current New York State (NYS) approved method of identification for domestic livestock must be used.
Exhibit - To display or present a mammal where direct public contact can occur, including competition or racing.
Exhibitor - The individual owner, their representative or the entity placing the mammal on exhibit.
Public - members of the human population openly and intentionally invited to an exhibit.
Human Exposure - The potential or actual contact or transmission of a mammal's saliva into the body of a human. Transmission can occur by means of a bite, scratch, abrasion, open wound, nerve tissue, or contamination of the human mucous membrane.
II. APPLICATION
This order applies to those exhibits, events, and venues within Tioga County where mammals are exhibited to the public. Exhibitors must not exhibit any mammal(s) within Tioga County unless all the requirements of section III are met.
III. REQUIREMENTS FOR EXHIBITION
A. Rabies vaccination of mammals to be exhibited.
B. Provide proof of Rabies Vaccination:
C. Surveillance of exhibited mammals.
D. Assist in identifying possible exposures to rabies from exhibited mammals:
Such records of human exposure may be in written, digital, photo, and/or security video form.
IV. ENFORCEMENT
Pursuant to 12-b of the Public Health Law, a person who willfully violates or refuses or omits to comply with this Order of the Tioga County Board of Health, is guilty of a misdemeanor which may be punishable by imprisonment for up to one year, or by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars, or both.
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