The number of rabies cases reported in South Dakota was down for the second year in a row last year, with only 21 reported. Dr. Russ Daly is the State Public Health Veterinarian says the disease periodically rises and falls.

Last year, 18 cases were found in wild animals, with three cases reported in domesticated animals including a cow, cat, and a goat. Daly says the wild cases are found primarily in skunks and bats, with 51 percent of the skunks in the state testing positive for rabies in the last decade. He says it’s important to protect domestic animals.

Daly says it has been about 40 years since the last human rabies case in South Dakota, but it’s still important to be aware of the signs of a possible rabies case in an animal.

Daly says that there have already been several cases in 2015, and he predicts the number of cases will rise again because of the disease’s cyclical nature. There were 28 cases in 2013 and 60 reported in 2012.