Some look like ketchup packets, others like greenish squares or brown ravioli. They're rabies vaccines, and nearly 800,000 of them are being scattered by plane, helicopter, and truck across a 14 county region. It's all part of a grand plan by federal and state authorities to control the spread of rabies by wildlife.
Laura Graber of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources says there's no risk of infection to people, pets, or livestock from the rabies vaccine.
"But we do ask that if people come across them, in your driveway or in your yard, (the) best thing to do is pick it up with a pair of gloves, and put them in a location such as a ditch or a wooded area, where raccoons can find it."
Rabies cases have been recorded in Lake, Geauga, Summit, and Cuyahoga Counties in the last decade. One area getting peppered with the rabies vaccine is Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Lisa Petit is its Chief of Resource Management. She says there are actually two types of vaccine being used. She says an older one has helped curb rabies in the raccoon population.
"The new vaccine that's being put out is actually targeted more at skunks," says Petit. "because they tend to continue the spread of rabies, even though the raccoons are pretty well contained."
The new vaccine - called ONRAB - was tested in West Virginia last year. Any raccoon or skunk that eats the vaccine will develop antibodies in its system to ward off rabies.
Other states involved in the effort include Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and North Carolina.