State and federal agencies are dispersing hundreds of thousands of edible rabies vaccine baits containing a live engineered virus across Texas counties, despite long-documented federal warnings about human exposure risks.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Texas health authorities have begun another annual cycle of aerial and ground distribution of live virus–containing oral rabies vaccine baits across wide areas of the state, including cities, rural communities, forests, and waterways. The campaign is led by the Texas Department of State Health Services and relies on the use of RABORAL V-RG, an edible oral rabies vaccine that contains a live, laboratory-engineered virus.
The operation is funded at approximately $2 million per year by the State of Texas and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services division. State officials describe the program as a wildlife disease-control effort intended to vaccinate coyotes, foxes, and other wild canids to prevent rabies variants from becoming established within Texas.
Federal health authorities have acknowledged for years that the vaccine carries exposure risks. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has documented for more than a decade that use of the oral rabies vaccine leaves “persons at risk for vaccine exposure and vaccine virus infection.” Despite this finding, millions of baits containing live, genetically modified virus are dispersed annually over populated areas without individualized public notice, informed consent, or comprehensive biosafety review.
According to a state press release, the Texas Department of State Health Services is expanding its 32nd annual Oral Rabies Vaccination Program, increasing aerial bait distribution in far West Texas. The expansion follows the establishment of the Arizona fox rabies variant in New Mexico, now within 150 miles of the Texas border. In addition to aircraft operations, vaccine baits are being placed by hand in targeted locations around El Paso and in parts of Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr, and Willacy counties.
“Our mission is to vaccinate wildlife along the borders of Texas to maintain herd immunity against rabies and keep new or previously eliminated rabies variants from becoming established in any part of Texas,” said Kathy Parker, ORVP Director and Field Surveillance Lead. “However, we continue to monitor all the counties of Texas for outbreaks and/or potential areas of rabies interest.”
The current campaign begins with flights originating from Alpine on Jan. 16, followed by additional flights from Del Rio International Airport starting Jan. 21, weather permitting. Aircraft fly at altitudes between 500 and 1,000 feet above ground level, releasing roughly 693,600 vaccine baits during a two-week operation. Between six and nine flights are scheduled daily, with distribution densities averaging 50 baits per square mile.
The program’s Border Maintenance Zone includes 19 Texas counties: El Paso, Hudspeth, Culberson, Jeff Davis, Presidio, Brewster, Pecos, Terrell, Val Verde, Kinney, Maverick, Zavala, Dimmit, Webb, Zapata, Starr, Hidalgo, Cameron, and Willacy. Each bait consists of a small plastic packet, comparable in size to a fast-food condiment pouch, coated with fish oil and fish-meal crumbles to attract wildlife. The vaccine is manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health USA Inc.
State officials assert that the baits do not pose a threat to pets, livestock, or wildlife and cite the program’s historical outcomes. Prior to its launch more than 30 years ago, Texas experienced human deaths linked to canine rabies and widespread use of post-exposure treatment. In 1994, the state recorded 122 confirmed animal cases of the domestic dog/coyote rabies variant. After the first aerial bait drops in South Texas in 1995, cases declined to zero by 2000. Two isolated cases reported in 2001 and 2004 occurred within a mile of the Rio Grande River and were attributed to wildlife crossing from Mexico.
A similar decline followed vaccination efforts targeting the Texas gray fox rabies variant, which began in West and Central Texas in 1996. More than 240 animal cases were confirmed in 1995, falling to zero by May 2009. Although a fox-variant case was identified in a cow in 2013, expanded bait distribution in subsequent years was followed by no additional confirmed cases. Since the program began, Texas has reported no human rabies cases attributed to these specific rabies virus variants.
Federal agencies nevertheless instruct the public to avoid contact with the baits. The U.S. Department of Agriculture warns that people should leave the live virus-containing vaccine undisturbed if encountered. If contact occurs, individuals are advised to immediately wash the affected area with warm water and soap. The agency also notes that dogs that consume the bait “may experience a temporary upset stomach.”
Peer-reviewed research has documented additional characteristics of the vaccine. A July 2019 study published in Vaccine described the oral rabies vaccine as a genetically engineered chimeric virus expressing a rabies gene. The study reported that the vaccine sheds for weeks in multiple species, was not tested for long-term live virus persistence, and can potentially infect non-target animals and humans. The researchers also disclosed financial ties to the vaccine’s sale.
“Most alarmingly,” the study found that virus DNA from the edible vaccine was detectable in both oral and rectal swabs after inoculation in most animals, “followed by a resurgence of shedding between days 17 and 34 in some species.” The findings indicate that animals ingesting the vaccine may shed virus for more than a month.
A September 2017 study published in Veterinary Research further confirmed that the live virus in the vaccine actively replicates in animals after ingestion, that horizontal transmission of the vaccine virus between animals has occurred, and that humans have been infected with vaccine-derived vaccinia following bait exposure.
That same research documented that the baits deliberately disperse tetracycline into the environment as a biomarker to track vaccine uptake. The compound accumulates in animal bones and teeth, can misrepresent actual vaccination rates, and is acknowledged to carry potential risks related to ecotoxicity and antimicrobial resistance with long-term use.
As Texas proceeds with the current round of aerial and hand-distributed vaccine releases, state officials continue to frame the program as essential to wildlife rabies control, even as federal studies and agency warnings acknowledge that the live virus vaccine used in the effort is capable of infecting multiple species, including humans.
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