Risk of rabies goes up

Risk of rabies exposure goes up with summertime's increased outdoor activities

When outdoor activities increase during the summer months, so do the chances that people will come into contact with stray and wild animals that may be infected with rabies, district public health officials warn.

"We see a lot of animal bites," said Southwest Georgia District Health Director Dr. Jacqueline Grant. "People who handle unvaccinated animals risk exposure to a fatal disease. We've done such a good job controlling rabies here for so long that people may not realize that the virus is still out there, as dangerous as ever."

Pet owners are required by law to vaccinate dogs, cats and ferrets against rabies, a viral disease that attacks the central nervous system. Keeping the rabies vaccinations up-to-date is one of the best ways people have of protecting themselves, their families and their companion animals from the disease, District Environmental Health Director Dewayne Tanner said.

However, it is far from the only way. Other rabies control measures include:

- Teaching youngsters not to touch or feed wild or stray animals

- Seeking emergency treatment promptly if attacked by a wild or stray animal

- Notifying your local health department to report bites or attacks by wild or stray animals

- Ten-day quarantines for vaccinated and healthy cats, dogs or ferrets that bite a person

- Euthanization for unvaccinated pets bitten or scratched by wild animals unavailable for testing

To determine if an animal has rabies, a lab test on its brain tissue must be performed, Tanner said. Testing is not called for if humans or other animals have not been exposed to the animal in question.

"An animal's head, rather than its whole carcass, must be submitted for testing," he said. "An animal suspected of having rabies should not be shot in the head or clubbed in the head, since that contaminates the specimen needed for testing."

If a specimen cannot be delivered to the lab immediately, it must be refrigerated but not frozen, Tanner added.

Wildlife most likely to carry the rabies virus includes bats, skunks, raccoons, foxes and coyotes, he said. "However, all mammals are susceptible. Livestock such as horses, cows and goats can also become infected and transmit rabies."

The virus is transmitted through the saliva of infected animals. While it is commonly passed through a bite, it can also invade a body through open cuts or by penetrating mucous membranes, Grant said.

"If, for example, you handle a baby animal groomed by its mother, you can get infected saliva on your hands. If you then touch your eyes, nose or mouth, you have opened a route for rabies infection," she said. "People exposed to rabies need immediate postexposure treatment."

Aggressive animals should raise a warning flag, but animals that appear "shy" may also carry the virus, said Tanner.

Because of the prevalence of rabies in bats, any exposure to the flying mammals - even if no apparent bite has occurred - is considered a rabies exposure, he noted. "A bat bite can be mistaken for a mosquito bite. Chances are you would never know you had been bitten."

More information about rabies is available 24-hours-aday, seven-days-a-week at the district website, www.southwestgeorgiapublichealth. org, or by calling the Georgia Poison Center at 1-800-282-5846 or 404-616-4000.