East Lansing neighbors on their own to deal with 'zombie raccoon'
EAST LANSING – It took a village, and a private contractor, to tackle a raccoon behaving strangely in the Flowerpot neighborhood last week.
Though neighbors feared the animal was sickened by rabies, it was more likely distemper, the same contagious disease that spawned an outbreak of “zombie raccoons” in Youngstown, Ohio, in April. Distemper caused the animals to rear on their hind legs and bare their teeth, unafraid of humans.
Even though residents of the neighborhood near Michigan State University’s campus feared for their safety, they were turned away when they asked for help from East Lansing police and Ingham County Animal Control.
East Lansing Police Lt. Chad Connelly says that shouldn’t have happened. He said police should respond to such calls.
Read more: https://www.lansingstatejournal.com/story/opinion/columnists/judy-putnam/2018/06/20/neighbors-act-their-own-remove-zombie-raccoon-east-lansing-distemper-animal-control-police/717751002/
