Rabies scare: Animal bite!

And just like that, the rage is being cured... lol 😂🤣

Everyone just loses their cool and starts snapping... unless they play it smart and get those shots right away after some rabid beast decides to take a bite out of them.

Scott Allen10 said:Everyone loses their mind when they're furious... unless, of course, they play it safe by getting vaccinated right after some rabid beast decides to take a bite out of them.

Or to put it more bluntly: you're looking at a 100% mortality rate.

Come on, don't go scaring her like that.🙄

The incubation period is actually quite long, which gives us plenty of time to take preventive measures, and she’ll get whatever treatment she needs if there's even a tiny hint that an animal might be rabid—though if it's a stray, we can always be cautious, whereas if you know the animal, you can usually be pretty certain one way or the other.

I’m just hoping she managed to make it to the doctor in the meantime.

Supposedly, this virus crawls along at a top speed of about 7 cm a day from the entry point until it hits the brain. Once it reaches the brain, you're done for. And honestly, timely vaccinations have been around for over 130 years now.

Anyway, check out this killer video of a bear taking on some African wild dogs:

http://www.wildcast.net/2007/05/15/r...ild-dog-video/

Wash the wound with soap and water right away—then get straight to the clinic for your shots.

Some damn pigeon just shoved its carcass into my mouth, and I haven't even checked if it was vaccinated against rabies. Should I be worried? I couldn't see the little freak in the dark until it was already in my mouth 😢

We once dealt with a situation involving someone who had contracted rabies but refused any kind of vaccination or preventative care... they ended up biting their own spouse and passing the virus along... luckily, the partner was already vaccinated and managed to pull through, but she didn't make it... we actually had to restrain her just to get through those final moments until she passed away....

There is actually a case documented in the medical literature where an individual survived rabies without receiving any vaccinations, so it isn't strictly 100% 🙂
...

Is that the little girl who got bitten by a bat?

I was just about to write something regarding that young girl in the US who survived rabies, Jeanne Giese. As far as I am aware, she hadn't been vaccinated, making her the 8th such case
which implies a mortality rate of nearly 100% 😁

1. Get to your doctor or an ER immediately to have the wound treated. If it’s just a minor scratch, you can clean it yourself first—and I mean actually clean it with soap and warm water, don't skip that part—before seeking medical help. You'll need to get your shots, specifically the RIG and ANA vaccines.
2. Ideally, go to the local rabies clinic in Washington, D.C. on the same day it happens. Bring your medical history along and report the bite. I think you can even head straight there right after it happens, and they might be able to administer the necessary vaccinations on the spot.

Once you report the dog bite at the rabies clinic in Washington, D.C.—it's just down the hall to the left once you walk in—they file a request with the Department of Labor for a three-stage rabies check on the dog. From there, the Department of Labor sends out a vet to handle everything. Just make sure you have the owner's full name, address, and a solid description of the dog ready to go.

If the owner is a decent human being, they’ll likely react immediately by trying to help. They might offer you a ride to the hospital or show you the dog's vaccination records right away to ease your mind. They should also take the dog to the vet to get official proof of its shots. If the dog is up to date on its rabies vaccine, the vet just performs clinical checks on days 1, 5, and 10 after the bite. If the dog isn't vaccinated, it stays in quarantine with the vet for 10 days to monitor for any symptoms. Once those three checks are done, the vet gives you a formal confirmation.

If you don't know the owner well, or if they’re acting shady and unhelpful, don't overthink it. Just go to the clinic in Washington, D.C. and report it. Do it for your own health, and honestly, do it for everyone else's too.
The dog doesn't actually have to be vaccinated. An owner might lie and claim it is, or say the vet is already handling it, when really they just skipped the shots to avoid the fine. Some people are so worried about the money that they completely ditch any sense of ethics or responsibility toward the person their dog just bit. They'll lie straight to your face.

Most GPs or hospital doctors won't even know how to direct you to the specific rabies clinic, which leaves you lost in the bureaucracy. And trust me, nobody needs that kind of stress.

My 17-year-old son tried to pet a dog tied up outside the local corner store, and the dog bit his hand. It was bleeding pretty bad. He went inside to ask who owned the dog, but nobody would step up. The cashier sent him to the nearby clinic where they cleaned and bandaged the wound, then sent him over to the Trauma Center. The doctor there checked him out, said it wasn't too serious, and told him to follow up with his regular doctor for wound care and next steps. His family doctor then sent him to the CDC in Arlington, where they logged the incident and decided he didn't need shots for rabies or tetanus.
I went back to the store to see if anyone knew who the owner was, and they told me the woman comes in to shop all the time. I left my contact info and phone number, but it’s been 12 days since the bite and I haven't heard a single word from anyone. Last night, my son started vomiting, and it lasted all night and into this morning. I am absolutely terrified that this is happening because of that dog bite. Things have calmed down a bit now, so I’m really hoping it’s just some stomach bug.
Honestly, I'm so angry at this woman for not telling me if her dog is vaccinated. She should have reached out so I wouldn't be sitting here panicking about my son throwing up! I'm going to go look for her around the neighborhood now. Does anyone know what I should do? Please, any advice on how to handle this.
Thanks! A worried mom

Eric Hayes97 said:Besides, most general practitioners—and even those working at the hospital—don't really know how to direct you to the right specialist at the Arlington facility, so you just end up getting lost in the bureaucracy, which is a pretty unpleasant experience to navigate.

I’m not entirely sure what the primary goal of the opening post was, but it's worth noting that not every doctor in Washington, D.C. works at the Arlington facility. That said, I wasn't just looking to piggyback on that point, but rather to address this other comment.

Based on everything I can gather, there isn't much to be done now because it's highly probable that this is just a viral infection. If we're talking about the possibility of this being a consequence of a bite, I'd say the odds are maybe 0.01% after twelve days have passed. First off, the owner hasn't even been located after all this time; we don't even know if she is the actual owner, nor do we know if the dog was properly vaccinated—there’s no official veterinary record confirming regular shots, and the dog wasn't under observation. In fact, I believe the doctors stated from the start that a vaccine wasn't necessary since the wound was so minor. I assume the current condition developed recently, rather than occurring just a few hours or a day or two after the incident... so, honestly, I don't think there is any connection there.

If you ask me, the logical step would have been to search the neighborhood for her that very same day—checking her records first, and then following the standard legal procedures from there.

I’m trying to gauge how much I can trust this—how safe am I if I get the rabies shot 7 days after being bitten by a dog that looked mostly healthy? It was a bite on my lower leg.

The details:

So, back on Monday, some random dog bit me. The owner was nowhere to be found, but the dog itself seemed fine, nothing off about it. Here's the kicker: I didn't get the rabies vaccine right away because they told me to try and track down the dog first, then come back to the clinic in three days. Well, couldn't find the dog. After those three days passed, I ran a slight fever—37.1°C (around 99°F)—so my doctor put me on antibiotics just to make sure I don't end up with sepsis or something equally nasty. When I finally went in for the rabies shots, they told me they couldn't administer them while I'm still on antibiotics. My fever is gone now, though. So now they want me to come back next Monday—which would be 7 days since the actual bite. Is this actually standard procedure? Should I be losing sleep over this?

So, my cat bit me—she's actually passed away now. Turns out she was battling leukemia, but we won't know if rabies was a factor for a few days. I'm assuming she was acting out because of the excessive drooling, even though she was never an aggressive cat. She snapped at me while I was holding her to change her bandages.

Anyway, this happened two days ago. What should I be doing right now, and what does the treatment process look like?

Thanks

To whom it may concern,

Your inquiry leaves a few gaps regarding what actually happened with the cat. Specifically, did the attending veterinarian request a brain tissue test for rabies at the appropriate facility? Did they even raise the possibility of rabies? If they did, they should have directed you to contact the local epidemiological services at your County Health Department or the Washington, D.C. health authorities immediately.

Bottom line: you need to contact the local epidemiological services at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or your local County Health Department as soon as possible. You should be able to find a number for an on-call epidemiologist online; call them right away.

Once they gather the facts—details on the circumstances, the cat’s recent behavior, whether it was eating or drinking, if it had been roaming outdoors, any visible injuries, potential contact with other animals, and its vaccination status—they will decide on the next steps. This could involve starting a rabies vaccination series along with human rabies immunoglobulin while waiting for the cat's test results, provided there is suspicion and the epidemiologist deems it necessary.

Standard procedure for any animal bite: wash the wound vigorously with soap and water immediately. Then, head to a medical facility—an urgent care center or ER if the wound is deep and needs stitches—to have it treated, receive a tetanus shot if needed, and potentially get antibiotics. After that, you must report the incident to the epidemiological services at your County Health Department or the Washington, D.C. health authorities.

Treat this with absolute seriousness. Consult an on-call epidemiologist immediately by looking up the contact information for your specific County Health Department or the Washington, D.C. health authorities online. They need to assess whether the animal poses a rabies risk and determine if you require immediate vaccination.

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah, the cat finally showed up a few days ago after being gone for ten days. She’s covered in wounds—there's actually no flesh left on one part of her leg, just bare bone, and her eye was in terrible shape. She bit me while I was trying to bandage the wound because someone had to hold her head still. We ended up having to put her down today; she was sent for testing because of the foaming at the mouth, and it turns out it was leukemia. For the last three days, she wasn't even aggressive, just slept constantly and struggled to breathe since her nose was blocked from getting hit during the fight. And no, she hasn't touched food or water in days.

Anyway, I got my referral, so I'm heading to Memphis tomorrow... the bite happened about 48 hours ago.

Listen, you need to contact an epidemiologist on call immediately. Based on what you've described, there is a real possibility of rabies here. This is an emergency. Please, take this seriously. Don't gamble with something like this. You need to notify an epidemiologist right where you are. Not tomorrow, but RIGHT NOW, THIS VERY SECOND!!!!!!!

stormyorca said:Anyway, my cat—who isn't with us anymore (turns out she was battling leukemia, though we'll have to wait a few days to see if rabies was also in the mix)—bit me. I’m assuming she was rabid because of the excessive drooling, even though she was never aggressive before—she bit me while I was just holding her to change her bandages.

Long story short, this happened two days ago. What should I do, and what does the treatment actually look like?

Thanks

Get to a doctor immediately—you really should have reached out already.🙂
First, they'll give you a tetanus shot.
2. They'll administer the rabies vaccine at the Department of Public Health.

Unfortunately, cats aren't subject to mandatory rabies vaccinations—which is frankly a bit idiotic, but what can you do?🤷Even though they're far more likely to come into contact with the rabies virus than dogs because they cover such massive territories.

No offense intended, but instead of posting this on some random forum, you should have just typed the question into Google and received this perfectly clear answer that covers everything:

“If bitten, the wound must first be thoroughly washed with soap and running water to effectively remove saliva and secretions from the site. Afterward, you need to report to your primary care physician, an urgent care clinic, or the emergency room. Once the wound has been treated, you must visit a specialized anti-rabies clinic for an examination with a referral from your primary doctor.”