Pet vaccinations urged after rabid skunk found

Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department officials are urging pet owners to check the vaccination status of their pets after a skunk found this week in North Lawrence tested positive for rabies.

The Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory in Manhattan confirmed the diagnosis.

Rabies is caused by a virus that affects the nerve tissue of infected animals, including humans, and is transmitted in the saliva of a rabid animal. Biting is the most common type of exposure, but transmission also can occur when infected saliva comes in contact with an open wound or mucous membrane of the mouth or eyes.

Kansas law mandates that dogs and cats more than 12 weeks old be vaccinated for rabies.

Highway Patrol honoring those killed in line of duty

Kansas Highway Patrol will join Concerns of Police Survivors (COPS) by observing National Police Week, today through Saturday. COPS is a national group of family members of officers who have died in the line of duty.

As part of this observance, the highway patrol, other law enforcement agencies and citizens across the nation will display blue ribbons on their vehicle’s aerial antennas to remember the fallen officers and their families.

According to COPS, 237 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty in 2001. This includes 71 officers who died during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. One Kansas law enforcement officer was among those killed last year.

Officer Wilson “Alex” Johnson Jr., an 18-year veteran of the Junction City Police Department, was shot and fatally wounded Dec. 3, while responding to a domestic violence call.