Best practices for nuisance wildlife control operators in New York State

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Ch 4: Zoonotic diseases in the Northeast

In the Northeast, these are the diseases you'd most likely be exposed to by...

MAMMALS

• Rabies (any mammal, but most commonly from skunks, raccoons, foxes, bats)
• Raccoon roundworm (mostly raccoons. Also: mice, squirrels, woodchucks, rabbits)
• Histoplasmosis (from bat roosts and caves, not directly from bats)
• Hantavirus (deer mouse, white-footed mouse)
• Mange (foxes, coyotes, squirrels)
• Toxoplasmosis (contact with contaminated meat, cat feces, or soil)

BIRDS

• Histoplasmosis (from bird roosts, poultry barns, not directly from birds)

REPTILES

• Salmonellosis
• There are some venomous snakes in the Northeast.

PARASITES AND INSECTS

• West Nile virus (mostly from mosquito bites)
• Lyme disease (from ticks. People are most likely to be infected from May through July).

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