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Rabies is a virus that attacks the Human cases of the virus are extremely rare in the United States, but if it’s not treated before symptoms appear, it’s deadly. Rabies has the highest mortality rate -- 99.9% -- of any disease on earth. The key is to get treated right away if you think you’ve been exposed to an animal that has rabies. How Is It Spread? Normally, rabies is spread through a deep bite or scratch from an infected animal. In the United States, rabies is mostly found in wild animals like coyotes, raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. Most humans infected with the virus got it from bat exposure. The best way to avoid getting rabies is to have your pets vaccinated. What Are the Symptoms? Typically, there are no symptoms right away. Rabies can lay dormant in your body for 1 to 3 months. Doctors call this the “incubation period.” Symptoms will appear once the virus travels through your central nervous system and hits your The first sign that something is wrong is fever. You might feel generally tired or weak. You may also feel pain, tingling, or burning at the site of the wound. As the virus spreads through your central nervous system, you’ll develop other, more severe symptoms. They include: • Inability to • • Confusion • Slight or partial paralysis • Hyperactivity • Being easily agitated • • Salivating more than usual • Difficulty swallowing In time, these symptoms give way to An Animal Bit Me. What Should I Do? Wash the wound right away with soap and water. That’s t...

Incubation periods longer than one year are exceptionally rare, but it can happen. There have been reports of rabies symptoms beginning years after exposure, including one case of a man who developed symptoms more than 20 years after a dog bite. Prodromal Period The prodromal period is described by the first appearance of symptoms. This is when the virus first enters the central nervous system and begins to cause damage. Furious rabies is the type most people with experience. As its name suggests, this form of rabies is characterized by violent physical and neurologic symptoms. Symptoms may come and go, and will often be interspersed with moments of calm and lucidity. Death will most often be caused by cardiorespiratory arrest. • Agitation • Hyperactivity • Hyperventilation • Excessive salivation • Hydrophobia (a distressing symptom characterized by an unquenchable thirst, an inability to swallow, and panic when presented with fluids to drink) • Partial paralysis • Confusion • Vomiting blood • Aggression (including thrashing and biting) • Hallucinations • Seizures • Hydrophobia results from intense pain and muscle spasms in the throat that make it difficult for a person with rabies to swallow. This may cause avoidance of water, and even the sight or sound of water may come to trigger spasms. When to See a Doctor Once rabies symptoms begin to appear, the infection is almost always fatal. To this end, you need to seek care the moment you are bitten by a wild animal—or even a...

The disease rabies is caused by a group of viruses, but the Rabies Lyssavirus (RABV) is the most important one in terms of public health, as almost all human and dog rabies cases are caused by this particular virus. In North America and Europe, rabies in wildlife (skunks, racoons, foxes, jackals, etc.) are also almost all caused by the RABV. Even bats in North America and vampire bats in South America are typically associated with the RABV. Most of the other viruses that cause rabies are associated with bats on other continents (e.g., Europe, Africa, Asia) and have resulted in only a handful of recorded human rabies deaths over the years. All of the work that the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC) does focuses on eliminating the RABV from people and dogs globally. Everything mentioned on the GARC site and in GARC resources will relate to the RABV, unless specified otherwise.

Thanks to widespread pet vaccinations, effective post-exposure treatment and the relative rarity of undetected bites by rabid animals, the number of human deaths from rabies in the United States caused has declined to an average of only one or two per year—far less than the number of human fatalities caused by lightning strikes. But this doesn't mean you shouldn't take precautions to protect yourself, your family and your pets. The best ways to guard against rabies: • Don't approach or handle wild animals, especially sick wild animals. • Vaccinate your pets. • Get prompt post-exposure treatment when advised to do so by a doctor or health department. What is rabies? Rabies (Lyssavirus) is an infectious disease that affects the central nervous system in mammals. It's transmitted through the saliva a few days before death when the animal "sheds" the virus. Rabies is not transmitted through the blood, urine or feces of an infected animal, nor is it spread airborne through the open environment. Because it affects the nervous system, most rabid animals behave abnormally. Signs of rabies in animals In the "furious" form, wild animals may appear to be agitated, bite or snap at imaginary and real objects and drool excessively. In the "dumb" form, wild animals may appear tame and seem to have no fear of humans. There are other signs, such as the animal appearing drunk or excessively wobbly, circling, seeming partially paralyzed, acting disorientated or mutilating itself. However, mo...

Rabies is an illness you get from an infection with the RABV virus. It causes symptoms like seizures, hallucinations and paralysis. The most common way to get rabies is through bat bites (in the U.S.) or dog bites (in Asia and Africa). Rabies is preventable if you’re vaccinated quickly after exposure. Once symptoms start, rabies is fatal. Overview Rabies is preventable if you clean the wound thoroughly and get vaccinated after you’ve been bitten. What is rabies? Rabies virus (RABV) is transmitted through direct contact (such as through broken skin or mucous membranes in your eyes, nose, or mouth) with saliva or brain/nervous system tissue from an infected animal. Rabies is fatal but preventable. It can spread to people and pets if they are bitten or scratched by a rabid animal. What happens when you get rabies? Rabies virus gets into your body when the saliva (spit) of an infected animal gets into an open wound (usually from a bite). It moves very slowly along nerves into your central nervous system (your brain and spinal cord). When it reaches your brain, the damage causes neurological symptoms. From there, rabies leads to coma and death. How common is rabies? About 59,000 people around the world die each year from rabies. In the U.S., human rabies cases are rare — fewer than three people get rabies each year. This is thanks to many people getting vaccinated soon after exposure. Who does rabies affect? Rabies is most common in rural parts of Asia and Africa, though it’s f...