5 things to know about bats and rabies

July 20, 2018.Reading time 3 minutes.

Public Health Insider has reported on multiple incidents of human/bat interactions this summer – a bat in a park bathroom, a bat at an equestrian center and a bat near Husky Stadium. Statewide, bat-human encounters broke a record this spring. So what are the essential 5 things to know about bats? Read on: 1. Anyone […]

How protecting your dog’s health also protects yours

September 15, 2017.Reading time 8 minutes.

At Public Health, we usually leave dog-related health issues to our friends in the veterinary community, but when furry companions start getting people sick, our ears perk up. Our epidemiologists and veterinarians specialize in zoonotic diseases – diseases caused by germs that can be spread from animals to humans. We want your pup to be […]

Suspected case of a rare disease linked to raccoon roundworms

May 8, 2017.Reading time 5 minutes.

UPDATE 05/9/17: Results came back from the CDC today indicating that the child tested positive for Baylisascaris. Original post from 05/08/17: Health experts suspect that a King County toddler may have contracted Baylisascaris infection, a very rare disease associated with accidental ingestion of roundworm eggs found in dirt or other substances that have been contaminated by raccoon droppings. […]

Bats: Not so bad, but please don’t touch

October 2, 2015.Reading time 5 minutes.

Bats have an unfortunate reputation. A small, unscientific survey of our staff said they associate bats with “vampires,” “Mitzvah,” “Michael Keaton,” and “Nelson Cruz.” Clearly, we needed to learn more. So we sat down with our in-house expert, Public Health Veterinarian Beth Lipton, who reminded us that bats aren’t all bad, but you really shouldn’t touch […]