If You Are Bitten By An Animal:
- Immediately flush the wound with soap and water for 15 minutes.
- If the animal is someone’s pet, get the owner’s name, address, and phone number.
- If the animal is wild or a stray, try to notice any features of the animal that will allow you to identify it later.
- Contact Jefferson County Animal Control
- Seek medical evaluation of the bite. A health care provider can tell you if treatment like antibiotics or a tetanus shot are necessary.
Rabies Information
Rabies is a severe viral infection of the brain and spinal cord that results in death. All mammals, including humans, can become infected with rabies. Animals that are considered “high risk” for rabies transmission in Missouri are bats, skunks, raccoons, and foxes. Domestic animals like dogs, cats, and ferrets can get rabies if they are not vaccinated. Domestic animals and livestock are considered “moderate risk” for rabies transmission. Rabies is very rare among small rodents (such as mice, rats, gerbils, chipmunks, hamsters, and squirrels) and rabbits. Non-mammals like birds, reptiles, and insects cannot get or transmit rabies. Wild animals account for most rabies cases in the United States. Human rabies is rare in the United States, averaging two to three cases per year and mostly caused by bats. In Missouri, most of the animals testing positive for rabies are bats and skunks.
The rabies virus lives in the saliva and brain/spinal tissue of an infected animal. It is usually transmitted by a bite from an infected animal. It can also be transmitted if the saliva or brain matter of an infected animal touches broken skin, open wounds, or gets in your mouth, nose, or eyes. Bats have small, needle-like teeth and a bite from a bat can be difficult to feel or see. If you find a bat in your home, you should call Jefferson County Animal Control at (636)-797-5577 to capture the bat for rabies testing and then seek medical advice. If a possible exposure occurred but the bat is not available for testing, your health care provider may advise you to take rabies post-exposure prophylaxis.
Symptoms
Rabies is almost always fatal in humans. Early symptoms may include headache, fever, fatigue, anxiety, and sensory changes at the site of the bite (itching, tingling, burning or cold). Late symptoms may include confusion, seizures, paralysis, and death.
Symptoms generally appear three to eight weeks after exposure, but onset may occur as soon as five days (very rare) to a year or longer afterward. Symptoms may occur more quickly if a bite occurred close to the brain (e.g., face or neck) rather than on the arms or legs.
Diagnosis and Treatment
Rabies is a serious disease. Dogs and cats are quarantined for 10 days after biting a human. If the animal remains healthy after 10 days, it does not have rabies. If the animal develops symptoms or dies within 10 days, the brain is sent for testing. In wild animals, there is no defined quarantine period. If rabies is suspected in a wild animal, the brain is sent to the lab for testing. In humans, rabies is diagnosed by a history of exposure, development of symptoms, and detection of the rabies virus in brain tissue after death.
There is no known treatment for rabies once symptoms start. However, rabies can be prevented if rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (RPEP) is administered soon after potential exposure to the virus, before symptoms have begun. RPEP consists of one dose of rabies immune globulin (RIG) and four doses of rabies vaccine over a 14-day period. Staying on schedule is extremely important. The amount of RIG someone receives depends on their weight. Rabies PEP is very effective in preventing rabies. Anyone who has received rabies PEP and adhered to the dosing schedule will be protected against rabies.
For more information regarding rabies please visit the Center for Disease Control website
Prevention
Rabies is preventable. You can prevent rabies by following these tips:
- Make sure your pets are vaccinated against rabies and their shots are up to date.
- Avoid stray pets and wild animals, especially bats, skunks, foxes, and raccoons.
- Do not handle dead, sick, injured, or wild animals yourself; contact Animal Control.
- “Bat-proof” your home by putting a cap on your chimney and closing any opening the size of a dime or larger that leads to the outside or attic