The third case of rabies this year in Fannin County, Ga., has been confirmed by the Georgia Public Health Laboratory, according to a news release.
A resident at a home about five miles south of Blue Ridge investigated a noise outside the home at about 11 p.m. Tuesday and found a raccoon growling at two kittens, so the resident shot and killed it. After testing, local health officials found out that test results were positive for rabies, environmental health specialist Shannon Bradburn said in the release.
The kittens had not had their initial rabies vaccinations, but it "seemed unlikely" they actually had contact with the raccoon, Bradburn said.
The kittens will be quarantined in double-penned enclosures at the home and monitored for six months, Bradburn said.
This was the second rabies case in a raccoon this year in Fannin County, authorities said.