The City of Arlington is urging people to protect their pets from wildlife.
"We are seeing some distemper in some of our wildlife, such as raccoons and foxes currently," Ashley Woolnough, animal services manager for the City of Arlington said. "It is an upper respiratory infection that also affects the nervous system of animals."
Last month, Arlington picked up 18 raccoons that tested positive for distemper.
There are signs to watch for in an animal infected with distemper.
Woolnough lists, "Ocular discharge where the eyes are really goopy, crusty nose from lots of drainage from their nose, neurological signs like headshaking, wobbly, disoriented."
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Woolnough urges people not to leave food outside for their dogs or cats.
"A lot of people like to leave food out for their dogs and cats," Woolnough said; "and when they do that, they're not just feeding their pets, but they're feeding the whole neighborhood of animals."
Other ways to protect household pets from wild animals infected with distemper are to remove tall grass and other clutter from the yards, and - most importantly - get pets vaccinated against distemper.
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