JUPITER, Fla. — The Florida Department of Health in Palm Beach County said it has detected rabies in an otter.
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Officials said a rabid otter bit a dog and then a person Saturday on Marlin Drive in Jupiter.
The otter was captured by animal control and later tested positive for the disease.
Read: 9 things to know about rabies
Residents in the area are advised to avoid contact with wildlife including domestic and feral cats.
Officials said rabies is a disease that attacks the nervous system and is fatal to humans and other warm-blooded animals if not treated.
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Transmission could also occur if the infected saliva or the animal’s nervous tissue enters open wounds, the mouth, nose, or eyes of another animal or person.
Anyone bitten by a wild animal must seek treatment immediately.
The only treatment for human exposure to rabies is rabies-specific immune globulin and rabies immunization.
Though rabies cases seem rare, they do happen.
Health alerts in Central Florida are typically sent out after rabies is detected in raccoons and bats.
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