Pets and the People Who Love Them for 9/27/17

Published 12:16 pm Wednesday, September 27, 2017

World Rabies Day is Thursday, and the Alabama Veterinary Medical Association has a message for homeowners: Rabies can be prevented.

“Statistics show 40 percent of the people bitten are young children,” said veterinarian Hal Pate, immediate past president of the ALVMA. “Keep your pets vaccinated and talk to your children about the risk of contact with wild animals.”

Formed in 2007, the Global Alliance for Rabies Control created a worldwide focus on rabies prevention. ALVMA supports this effort and encourages pet owners to have their pets vaccinated.

Dogs, cats, ferrets, horses and valuable livestock should be vaccinated. Distinct strains of rabies virus have been identified in raccoons, skunks, foxes and coyotes. Several species of insectivorous bats are also reservoirs for strains of the rabies virus. Recently, researchers with the Centers for Disease Control have suggested feral cat colonies may also pose a rabies risk.

Some facts to consider:

• Rabies is caused by a virus that animals and people can get through exposure to the saliva or nervous tissue from a rabid animal. It is nearly always fatal without proper post-exposure treatment;

• Rabies is zoonotic, which means it can spread from animals to people;

• In 2015, there were 3,447 cases of animal rabies reported in the United States. These animals, mostly wildlife, can expose humans or pets to rabies;

• It is estimated only 50-60 percent of the dogs and 20-25 percent of the cats in Alabama are vaccinated for rabies;

• There were approximately 7,000 dog and cat bites in Alabama last year. A significant percentage of these bites result in post-exposure rabies prophylaxis for the person who is bitten at a cost of from $1,000 to $3,000 for each exposure; and

• In Alabama, raccoons and bats are most frequently found to be rabid. In 2015, there were 81 cases of rabies diagnosed in animals in Alabama (63 percent were raccoons and 16 percent were bats).

In most cases, preventing rabies is as simple as ensuring adequate animal vaccination and control, avoiding contact with wild animals and educating those at risk. If you or your pet is bitten or scratched by a wild animal, contact your physician/veterinarian immediately.

The rabies virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death. Early symptoms of rabies in people are similar to that of many other illnesses, including fever, headache and general weakness or discomfort.

As the disease progresses, more specific symptoms occur. Rabies vaccinations will protect your pets from rabies infection. Be sure your pet vaccinations are current, and take all precautions to avoid contact with any animal that may be infected.

— Pets and the People Who Love Them is brought to you by your friends at the Athens-Limestone Animal Shelter. To adopt a dog or cat, visit the shelter at 1701 U.S. 72 (behind Limestone Veterinary Clinic), visit our Facebook page or call us at 256-771-7889. Email your questions and story ideas to me at PetsAndPeople@charter.net and I’ll check with the experts (veterinarians, animal behaviorists, etc.) and get back to you in a future column.