Dog in north Georgia quarantined after exposure to rabid raccoon

CHATSWORTH, Ga. — A Chatsworth dog fought and killed a raccoon that has now tested positive for rabies. The dog is current on its rabies vaccinations so will only need a booster shot and to undergo a 45-day quarantine at home, but health officials are warning neighbors that multiple raccoons have been spotted near the property where the incident occurred and to take extra precautions against rabies. On Jan. 2, a resident on Center Hill Church Road in Chatsworth reported that the dog living at the residence had fought with the raccoon on the property and killed it, said Jason Baum, Murray County Environmental Health manager The state Public Health Laboratory informed health officials that the raccoon tested positive for rabies. There was no human exposure in this incident. Baum and his staff have distributed to neighboring homes in the area fliers that alert residents to the exposure and urge them to get pets boosted or vaccinated against rabies.

Hadley Museum, Studio 209 welcome Gullah Geechee exhibit

THOMASVILLE, Ga. — The Jack Hadley Black History Museum, in partnership with Thomasville Center for the Arts’ Studio 209, will be hosting Savannah’s Willis Hakim Jones “Making Do: The African and Gullah Geechee Connection” exhibition opening on Thursday, Jan. 10. Jones has one of the largest collections of Islamic artifacts in the Southeast and perhaps the U.S. Jones, a Gullah Geechee descendant, has acquired artifacts relative to Gullah Geechee history and culture in the United States. The Gullah Geechee cultural history exhibited at Jack Hadley Black History Museum ranges in date from mid-19th to mid-20th century. From newspaper articles and photographs and the history that coincides with them, this exhibition helps to give insight as to how enslaved Africans preserved their cultural heritage in the face of displacement and hardship. There will be an opening reception Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Studio 209, where Jones will be speaking about the collection from 6:30-7:30 p.m. The reception is set to begin at 5:30 p.m. at Studio 209. A portion of the exhibition will be displayed at the Jack Hadley Black History Museum and a portion will be displayed at Studio 209. The exhibit will be available through Sunday, Feb. 23.