Bertie County Sheriff Greg Atkins sent out a plea through this publication and others in the region Monday: get your animals vaccinated.

The sheriff was speaking for good reason as a seven year-old boy was bitten by a dog near Colerain last week. The dog, which was put down by the boy’s grandfather, later tested positive for rabies.

Now the young man will have to go through rabies vaccinations himself which is, to say the least, an unpleasant experience.

And all of it likely could have been avoided.

Sometimes it’s easy to forget to have an animal vaccinated. We intend to do it, but just don’t seem to find the time, money or effort. Unfortunately, that can result in disaster. It can result in the pet we love so dearly becoming infected with rabies.

We implore those of you with dogs, cats or whatever other pets you may have to take the time to make sure they are properly vaccinated. The vaccination for rabies generally isn’t a high-dollar item and should be a high priority.

The best way to keep our pets, children and ourselves safe is to make sure our pets are vaccinated. It just makes good, common sense.

If your pets haven’t been vaccinated, we urge you to contact your local veterinarian today to make sure it gets done.