From August to October, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (OMNRF) will distribute rabies vaccine baits for wildlife by aircraft in rural areas and by hand in urban areas throughout southern, southwest and eastern Ontario.

Between Aug. 19 and Sept. 6, OMNRF will distribute rabies vaccine baits in Peel Region, Brant, Elgin, Haldimand, Halton, Hamilton, Middlesex, Niagara, Norfolk, Oxford, Perth, Waterloo and Wellington counties.

These dates are subject to change depending on weather conditions.

Since the start of the rabies outbreak in 2015 — the first of its kind in over a decade — the ministry has distributed more than four million vaccine baits from air and the ground; helping to immunize most raccoons, skunks and foxes that eat them.

Since 2016, OMNRF says rabies cases have declined in Ontario by approximately 50 per cent each year.

The khaki-green coloured bait is made of wax-fat with an attractant vanilla-sugar flavour. A label with a toll-free telephone number (1-888-574-6656) and "Do not eat" are located on the exterior of the bait, and a plastic package containing the liquid rabies vaccine is embedded in the centre.

If found, the bait should not be touched, but left for raccoons, skunks and foxes to consume. According to the ministry, it is not harmful to a pet or person if a bait is consumed by mistake. However, contacting a doctor or veterinarian as a precaution is recommended.

If a person contracts rabies and does not receive treatment, the disease is fatal.

For further information about rabies in Ontario, visit Ontario.ca/rabies or contact OMNRF's rabies information line at 1-888-574-6656.