RABIES & ANIMAL BITES
Department Information
Talbot County Health Department
Office of Environmental Health
215 Bay Street, Suite 4
Easton, MD 21601
Phone: (410) 770-6880
Fax: (410) 770-6888
Open Monday – Friday 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM
*After hours, on-call service is provided for emergency situations related to but not limited to the following: Pet or human exposure to wildlife, Bite or Scratch from pets to humans; Reports of Illegal Open Burning; Complaints of unlawful discharge of sewage to the ground surface, or waters of the State. Staff may be reached after hours by calling the Talbot County Operations Center at (410) 822-0095. The Dispatcher will then contact the staff member on call.*
Rabies/Animal Bite Program
Any person having knowledge of a person being bitten or otherwise exposed to rabies by a warm blooded animal must report the suspected contact to the Office of Environmental Health. The staff of the Office of Environmental Health will investigate the circumstances of the incident as per the requirements of the above referenced regulation. Any person having knowledge of any animal known or suspected of having rabies, or exposed to an animal know to have or suspected of having rabies must immediately contact this office at 410-770-6880 to report the incident. A 24-hour on call service is provided by the Office of Environmental Health for reporting of animal or human exposure to rabid or suspected rabid animals. The after hours contact number is the Talbot County Operations Center at 410-822-0095. A dispatcher will then contact the Environmental Health staff person on call.
Each person who owns or keeps a dog, cat or ferret that is 4 months old or older is required by law to have the dog, cat or ferret vaccinated against rabies.
The Talbot County Office of Environmental Health provides several annual anti-rabies clinics for dogs, cats and ferrets over 4 months of age. These clinics are provided at various locations throughout the county in the Spring, Summer and Fall. Contact the Office of Environmental Health at 410-770-6880 for information regarding upcoming anti-rabies clinics.