Two more Orange County raccoons have tested positive for rabies this month, bringing the total rabies cases for the year to six, according to Orange County Animal Services.

The most recent incident occurred May 9. Residents on Hurdle Mills Road and Wilkerson Road in Cedar Grove found a dead raccoon in their driveway. A woman had seen a raccoon in her yard days earlier and saw at least one of her three cats near the raccoon. Two cats were current in their vaccines. One cat's vaccination had expired.

North Carolina law requires that a dog or cat with current vaccination get a booster shot within 72 hours of any suspected rabies exposure. Under the same law, animals that have not been vaccinated must be destroyed or quarantined for six months.

In this case, two cats with up-to-date vaccines received a booster shot. The cat that was not current was surrendered for euthanasia because of potential exposure, according the Orange County Animal Services' news release.

On May 8, Chapel Hill residents at Arthur Minnis Road and Dodson Crossroads spotted a dead raccoon in their dog pen. Although their two dogs and one cat were not directly seen with the raccoon, there was no way to exclude the possibility. All the animals in that case were currently vaccinated against rabies.

Last year, there were 19 cases of rabies documented in Orange County.

For more information, contact the state Division of Public Health at 707-5900 or check www.epi.state.nc.us/epi/rabies.html.