1. Raccoons once won people's hearts as furry creatures with black masks. Now as rabies is sweeping many metropolitan regions, raccoons are feared and hated. They have lost their attractiveness as adorable cuddly animals.
2. In the past, police would receive occasional complaints about raccoons, who overturn garbage cans or bite their way through trash bags. However, last year police in some regions received three or four raccoon complaint calls a week.
3. In December, police shot and killed four raccoons; one was rabid. In fact, raccoons are identified as major carriers of rabies, which is sometimes a fatal disease.
4. Many see as essential the need to protect people from rabies. Nevertheless, they are unhappy with the usual way of dealing with the problem--shooting the raccoons.
5. The slaughter may not be necessary. Apparently, only one in six raccoons has rabies. Unfortunately, people respond to early reports of rabies by trying to destroy every raccoon they encounter. A more humane response might be to inoculate raccoons. While there are procedures available to accomplish this goal, the costs are high.
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