Rabies Vaccination Program for Skunks, Raccoons in Effort to Stop Spread to Montreal

A captured raccoon peers through the bars of a trap in Grand Isle, Vt., on Sept. 27, 2007. The Canadian Press/AP-Toby Talbot

Quebec wildlife officials are trying to prevent the spread of rabies to Montreal with a vaccination campaign for raccoons and skunks.

Since the beginning of the year, Quebec has confirmed 71 cases of raccoon rabies and three cases of bat rabies mostly in the regions south and east of Montreal.