NORTH LIMA, Ohio - The U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin distributing oral rabies vaccine baits for wildlife in Mahoning, Trumbull and Columbiana counties starting Monday, Aug. 18.

The effort is part of the USDA’s National Rabies Management Program, which seeks to prevent the westward spread of the rabies virus, most often carried by raccoons. The program creates a barrier along the Appalachian Mountains from the Canadian border to Alabama.

The project, based out of North Lima, will run from Aug. 18 through Sept. 9. Approximately 474,000 baits will be distributed in Ohio alone.

The vaccine, called ONRAB, is contained in a blister pack and coated in a waxy green substance with a sugar-vanilla scent. The odor attracts animals like raccoons, which are then immunized against rabies

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