Mission Statement:
We commit through personal and programmatic excellence to inform citizens about zoonotic disease and animal control issues through education, disease surveillance, and epidemiologic investigations. Our combined team effort will contribute to DSHS's overall objective of promoting and protecting the health and well being of the citizens of the State of Texas.
Program overview:
The "big picture" Zoonosis Control Program goals are to reduce the incidence of zoonotic diseases and animal bites within Health Service Region 7. The activities currently being applied to reach these goals related to education, surveillance, and disease reporting are:
Provide consultations for persons bitten by animals; assess rabies risk.
Sell rabies post-exposure biologics (vaccine and immune globulin) to persons with physician's prescription and a valid rabies exposure risk.
Investigate legally reportable zoonotic diseases in humans and animals.
Educate medical professionals (human and veterinary), media, government officials, and general public via telephone consultations, quarterly newsletters, educational pamphlets, and speaking engagements.
Coordinate training of professional animal control officers (ACO) and their municipal and county government leadership. Offer Basic and an Advanced ACO Training Courses on a regular basis.
Inspect rabies quarantine facilities.
Register animal shelters mandated to undergo annual inspection by a private veterinarian.
Review animal shelter rabies quarantine facility construction plans.
Provide consultation on updating local animal control ordinances.
Perform tick and mosquito surveillance (trapping) to detect viral, rickettsial and spirochetal agents that may cause disease in people/communities.
Conduct emerging disease investigations (i.e. Hantavirus, Tularemia, West Nile Virus).
Participate in special projects (i.e. Oral rabies Vaccination Program, graduate level and veterinary student unpaid internships; disease outbreak investigations unrelated to Zoonosis Control).
Animal Control Officer Training
Rabies Information
West Nile Virus Information
Chagas Disease (Triatomid Bug Submission)
Tick Submission
Contacts:
Beverlee E. Nix, DVM, MPH - Zoonosis Veterinarian
Leslie Platz, Program Specialist
Melissa Maass, Program Specialist
Kelly Andrews, Public Health Prevention Specialist
DSHS Rabies Information Link
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