Stanislaus County health officials on Tuesday issued an advisory after a bat found in downtown Modesto tested positive for rabies.

This is the second rabies health advisory issued by a local public health department in a week. San Joaquin County issued an advisory Friday after a dead bat found in north Stockton tested positive for rabies.

The Modesto animal was found last Friday just before noon. It was lying on the sidewalk in the 900 block of 11th Street, between I and J streets. Workers inside a business saw the bat and called police, who in turn notified animal control workers.

It was the third rabid bat found in Stanislaus County so far this year. The first was found by a ranger at Knights Ferry in May, the second in Modesto at Scenic Drive and Claus Road in June.

The bat last week was still alive but sick, animal control officer Jamie Demings said. Officials aren't aware of any humans who touched the bat before animal control arrived.

"Most people are so panicked about bats, they stay away," Demings said.

Anyone who came in contact with the animal should call the Public Health Department at 558-5678.

When found alive and visibly sick, bats are taken to the county animal shelter where they are euthanized, then tested for rabies.

Other reported cases of rabid animals include:

• A dog in Sacramento, reported two weeks ago.
• A skunk in Tuolumne County that fought with five pet dogs and bit a wildlife volunteer, reported in July.
• A bat in Merced County, earlier this year.

Until this year, no animal had tested positive for rabies in Stanislaus County in two years. But Animal Services Director Michael Rodriguez said finding three so far this year is not unusual.

"The rule of thumb is 10 percent are carriers of rabies," Rodriguez said. "Generally, the number one rabies carriers are skunks. Bats are second."

County officials urge dog and cat owners to get their animals vaccinated for rabies.

Rabies vaccinations are recommended for people who have touched an infected animal, even if it did not bite or scratch its handler.

"It's possible to contract the virus from the animal's saliva," Rodriguez said. "If it enters a open wound, you can be infected."

Today's rabies shots aren't the terror they once were -- a series of painful injections in the abdomen. Now, a rabies vaccination consists of five shots in the arm given over four weeks.

Shots must begin soon after exposure. Once the disease produces symptoms, there is no treatment and rabies is usually fatal. The incubation period averages four to eight weeks, but may take as little as nine days. Initial symptoms are low-grade fever, headache, loss of appetite, disorientation and, in some cases, seizures, according to the American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine.

Officials remind people to avoid direct contact with all wild animals, especially bats, skunks, raccoons and foxes.

Stanislaus County Animal Services will provide low-cost rabies vaccinations on Oct. 23 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Denair Senior Center, and on Nov. 19 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Keyes Hall. For more information, call 558-7387.