North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Releases Timeline in Mobile Petting Zoo Rabies Case

State health officials have now named ten specific dates and locations where a rabies-infected herd of baby goats may have exposed the public across North Carolina.

What NCDHHS Confirmed

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, working alongside the NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, has released a detailed exposure timeline connected to a rabies outbreak among baby goats at Farm Adventures, a mobile petting zoo based in Harmony, North Carolina. State officials were first notified of a possible rabies exposure among four baby goats on August 27. The NC State Laboratory of Public Health confirmed rabies virus in three of the goats on August 28, and a fourth goat, though not tested, is presumed infected as well. Officials believe the goats were exposed after a skunk got into their pen in late July. Based on information gathered on August 28, NCDHHS determined that no other animals on the farm pose a rabies risk to people.

Ten Dates, Ten Locations

Anyone who had contact with the baby goats, whether at the Farm Adventures location in Harmony or at an off-site event, between July 28 and August 27, 2026, may have been exposed while the animals were infectious. NCDHHS has released the following list of known potential exposure dates and locations:

July 28: Jurney's Assisted Living, 1942 Van Haven Drive, Statesville, Iredell County

July 30: Private event, Mecklenburg County

August 1: Community Connections Back-to-School Bash, Breeden Amphitheater, 333 S. Main St., Lexington, Davidson County

August 6: Brookdale Peachtree, 2806 Peachtree Road, Statesville, Iredell County

August 8: Private event, Watauga County

August 9: Private event, Burke County

August 15: Masonic Picnic Grounds, 201 Poplar St., Mocksville, Davie County

August 16: Private event, Durham County

August 22: Private event, Iredell County

August 23: Private event, Durham County

Public health officials are working directly with the organizers of each of these events to notify attendees who may have had contact with the infected goats. NCDHHS notes the investigation is ongoing and additional public event locations will be released as they are identified.

Who Should Take Action

Anyone who had contact with the goats at any of the dates and locations above should contact their local health department to determine whether preventive medication is needed. NCDHHS is specifically encouraging people to call ahead before going to an emergency department or urgent care clinic, so staff can advise on whether treatment is necessary and where it can be accessed most efficiently.

Why Vets Should Care About the Livestock Angle

NCDHHS points out something worth flagging for anyone in clinical practice: while rabies transmission from livestock carries a lower risk than a bite from a wild animal, exposure is still possible through saliva from an infected animal. Baby goats in particular are bottle-fed, handled closely, and cuddled far more than most livestock, which is exactly why officials say they are being so proactive about evaluating anyone with direct contact. It is a useful case for client conversations about why petting zoo animals, however docile, still carry the same rabies risk calculus as any other unvaccinated mammal.

Human rabies infections remain extremely rare in the United States, and North Carolina has not reported a human case since 2011. Rabies spreads primarily through a bite or scratch, or when infected saliva contacts broken skin or mucous membranes, and it is almost always fatal in mammals, including people, once symptoms begin. Symptoms can take weeks to months to appear after exposure, typically starting as flu-like illness with weakness, fever, or headache, along with a prickling or itching sensation at the exposure site. Preventive medication given before symptoms develop is highly effective, which is why NCDHHS is urging anyone with possible exposure to act now rather than wait.

Source

This article is based directly on the official news release "NCDHHS Shares New Details About Rabies at Mobile Petting Zoo," published by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. For the full release and ongoing updates, visit the NCDHHS rabies page.