Rabies & Tick Submissions

Aspetuck Health District accepts tick and animal specimen submissions to help monitor and prevent the spread of rabies and tickborne diseases in our communities.

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Tick Submissions

If you have removed a tick from a person and would like to submit it for testing to the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, complete the tick form and drop it off at the Health District. Please note that the tick testing program is intended for the identification/testing of ticks on humans.

Things to Know:

• There is a $10 service charge for processing.
• Female deer ticks and nymphs are tested for Lyme, Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Borellia Miyamotoi & Powassan Disease.
• You and the Aspetuck Health District will receive your results via email.
• We recommend that you notify your health care provider that you have submitted a tick for laboratory testing. 
• Reporting time for laboratory results can vary from one to two weeks.  
• Aspetuck Health District is not responsible for ticks that get lost or misplaced in the mail or by CAES.

Helpful Links:

• The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES)
• For more information on tick-borne illnesses: CDC About Ticks and Tickborne Disease

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Rabies Testing

Bats, Raccoons & Other Animals:

1. Call the Health District if you have a dead bat or another animal that may need to be submitted to the State of CT for rabies testing. Note that only dead animals can be accepted,
2. The nurse will discuss the potential exposure and complete the paperwork to have the animal tested at the State Public Health Laboratory in Rocky Hill, CT.
3. A courier service is available to transport the animal from the Health District to the State of Connecticut lab for a $100 fee payable by the resident.
4. If you have a live bat, please call a Nuisance Wildlife Control Officer or consult a veterinarian to have the bat euthanized.

When to call Animal Control:

• You have a sick or injured animal on your property
• Your pet has tangled with an animal and has killed or maimed it

Local Animal Control contact information:

• Westport
• Weston
• Easton

When to call the Health District:

You should call AHD when you have questions about an exposure to a potentially rabid animal. However, if you are bitten by an animal, you should first seek medical care at your primary care doctor’s office or the Emergency Room.

Testing of Animals:

• If there has been human exposure to the animal, it should be tested for rabies
• If there is no human exposure, and your pet is up-to-date on vaccinations, there is usually no need to test the dead animal
• Testing may be considered when a pet is not up to date on its vaccinations

Helpful Links:

• CT Department of Public Health
• For more information on Rabies: CDC Rabies