North American wildlife rabies vaccination efforts

Public health and environmental authorities in North America are conducting oral rabies vaccine (ORV) bait distributions to control the spread of raccoon rabies.

In Quebec, the Ministry of the Environment, Climate Change, Wildlife and Parks (MELCCFP) initiated a campaign to distribute approximately 815,000 oral vaccine baits across 111 municipalities between August 3 and September 13, 2026. This effort targets raccoons, skunks, and foxes, utilizing hand-distribution and aerial drops. In Kahnawà:ke, the Mohawk Council’s Animal Control Services and the Kahnawà:ke Environment Protection Office, working with the Quebec ministry, scheduled bait placement for late August in high-activity raccoon areas.

Simultaneously, in Northern Maine, the USDA Wildlife Services and the Maine Department of Health and Human Services distributed nearly 599,000 baits in Aroostook County between August 12 and August 24. This campaign, which uses aircraft and vehicles to deploy fishmeal-coated baits, is part of a broader rabies-control barrier extending from the Canadian border to Alabama.