Rabies in the Baltic States: Decoding a Process of Control and Elimination.

Rabies is a fatal zoonosis that still causes nearly 70, 000 human deaths every year. In Europe, the oral rabies vaccination (ORV) of red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) was developed in the late 1970s and has demonstrated its effectiveness in the eradication of the disease in Western and some Central European countries. Following the accession of the three Baltic countries--Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania--to the European Union in 2004, subsequent financial support has allowed the implementation of regular ORV campaigns since 2005-2006.