My dog might have been bitten by a possum...Rabies question?

Question

If she hasn't had her rabies shot, and gets one tomorrow, and the possum had rabies, will she be safe from contracting it? Just a question. We have a vet appt. tomorrow.

Answer 1

Short answer is probably ;-) Vaccination right after a bite is generally very effective... vaccination after symptoms are seen is almost 100% ineffective. Rabies is able to kill because of its stealth characteristics, it is almost ignored by the canine (and human) immune systems until it is in the fatal stages. The vaccines given provoke the body to produce the appropriate antibodies which fight off the virus. I would guess she has a very good chance of survival, but I wouldn't gurantee it at 100%... That is, if she contracted rabies from the bite... she will be fine if the animal wasn't rabid... your vet might suggest a more advanced strategy for treatment (which involves more than just a single vaccine injection...) and I would go with whatever he says just to be safe...

Remember, rabies is always fatal once symptoms begin.

Answer 2

I hope that this will be helpful for you.

One week ago, on Saturday, we had a situation in my home which caused me to do some research on Rabies. A bat got into the house and I discovered it in the bathroom in the middle of the day. We had no idea how many days or hours it had been in the house. I have two kittens who are under 5 months old and a puppy 11 months old.

I immediately called the vet who told me to bring all three down to the animal hospital. In the interim, we captured the bat and also called animal control who came and took it away to have it tested, but since it was Labor Day weekend, they didn't expect to have the results until Tuesday at the earliest.

The kittens had their first rabies shot about 4 weeks earlier, so although the vet did look them over to see if there were any bite marks that could be seen and then cleaned, she said they would be protected by their recent shots.

The puppy on the other hand, had his shot back about 6 to 7 months ago, so the vet gave him a "Rabies booster." It's my understanding from what the vet said, that this brings up the immune system against the Rabies virus in case the bat was rabid.

Rabies is virtually 100% fatal if you (or your pet) is exposed to it UNLESS you/your pets either have received pre-exposure vaccines or immediately start the post-exposure vaccine. If you were exposed at all, you need to contact your doctor ASAP.

Since Rabies is a virus, antibiotics will do nothing to stop it. The only effective antidote is rabies vaccines for pets and post-exposure vaccines for people if they are exposed. The vaccine is 100% effective if you have it soon enough!

My doctor told me to go to the emergency room of our local hospital. Fortunately, the ER doctor was able to call the Public Health doctor, who had arranged for Sunday morning hours to test the bat quickly. I had the results by Tuesday morning and didn't have to get the shots.

The Center for Disease Control has an excellent website for information: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/rabies/default.htm

Another very good website that I found that day for information on Rabies that Massachusetts Department of Health sponsors: http://www.mass.gov/dph/cdc/epii/rabies/rabies.htm

A site which talks about if your pet is not vaccinated: http://www.delmars.com/kitcats/rabiefaq.htm

A site which sets the guidelines in New York State:
http://www.erie.gov/health/healthinfo/pdfs/RabiesECDOHPamphlet_4-02_.pdf#search='dog%20no%20rabies%20shot%20wild%20animal'

A site which discusses if your pet may have been bitten, it's from North Carolina where they say there are definite rabies cases:
http://www.pawsplace.org/Rabies.html

Are you certain your dog was exposed/bitten by the possum? Why do you think the possum might have rabies? Usually it's more common that skunks, racoons and bats that carry it.

I had a dog who was fascinated with the possum that came into our yard to gather apples from our apple tree. Our dog would follow the possum across the yard poking him in the butt and sniffing him as he waddled across the lawn. We never even thought about rabies.

Remember the only "test" for rabies is to kill the animal and run tests on brain tissue. You DON'T want to ask for a rabies test for your dog! Most states have 10 day quarantine "house arrest" for dogs who have bitten folks/animals to guarantee that at the end of the time they are healthy and not showing any signs of rabies.

You're very wise to be taking them to the vet. If you handled or were exposed to the possum, you may want to talk to a doctor about it. Good luck. I hope it works out okay for you and your pet.

Answer 3

You are on the right track to get her to the vet ASAP. Be sure to let the vet know, as closely as you can, the time that your dog got bitten. The length of time between the bite and the shot and the location of the bite are big factors in the amount of risk involved. This is the kind of situation where a professional's advice is the only kind that is valuable. Accidents like this are the main reasons it is so essential to keep pets' shots current. Good luck to you and your dog.

Some communities have pet emergency vet services that are open after the usual vet clinic hours. My town has one, which has been invaluable to me on a couple of occasions - when my male cat, as a kitten, caught a wicked gastroenteritis and then, ten years later, when he chewed at an itchy foot until he broke a vein and bled heavily. You may want to find out where the nearest emergency vet service is. For accidents like the one you're dealing with, it can be worth every penny.

Answer 4

Don't panic, opossums rarely carry rabies. They tend to avoid fights and situations in which rabies is usually transmitted from one animal to another and they have a very low body temperature which makes it difficult for the rabies virus to get a foothold in an opossum's body. Take the dog to the vet for a shot a.s.a.p. and tell the vet what happened. Your town probably has rabies-related reporting laws for vets and your dog may need to be kept for observation (usually 10 days) just to be on the safe side. This is done in most animal bite cases. Your dog has an excellent chance of being just fine but from now on try to keep up on the vaccinations for the dog's sake.

Answer 5

If they are treated in the same way we are-after a rabies scare-the time would have elapsed to be "safe" by a vaccine -after the fact ; so your dog will most likely need to begin rabies shots .ASAP . It would not be "safe" without the shots at this point .Your vet may be able to tell if it was a possum bite or not .Don't let too much time go by without treatment .

Answer 6

I think this is a better question to be answered by a veterinarian, if you can trap the possum and send it to get checked for rabies it would be nice to know, but not all possums have rabies so your sog might be ok, i have no idea why you didnt vaccinated your dog againts rabies. Rabies is always a priority vaccination, you should ask your veterinarian if they have the 3 year rabies vaccination in case since you dont seem to remember to vaccinate your dog againts rabies.

Answer 7

Probably, they will give her a rabbies vaccine in the morning. Did you catch the possum? How long ago was she bite? What state do you live in, some states have more problems with rabbies than others. Would of been better if she had a rabbies shot first though. The first rabbies shot is a 1 year shot, then the second shot a year later is a 3 year shot. And of course, if a pet gets bite then they have to have an immediate booster shot.

Answer 8

She should be okay but I would BE SURE to inform the vet that you suspect she was bitten by an opossom. If there is ANY way to catch the suspected opossum then it would be wise to take it to the vet also as that is the only way to BE SURE if it does or doesnt have rabies. By knowing of the situation your vet will be able to treat you pooch either way.....BEST OF LUCK!!! and in the fututre try to stay on top of your pets shots & this wont ahppen again...IM not bitchin at ya just saying, like it goes an ounce of prevention is worth a to nof cure!

Answer 9

You should definetlay get her vaccinated as soon as possible.

A vaccine is just a weakened form of the virus. The dog's immune system can develope anit-bodies to the virus, usually not getting ill. It can take up for a weak for this process to be fully complete.

If the possum that bit your dog had rabies, which there is a good chance that it does, it may be too late for a vaccination. However, it will not hurt.

Ask your veterinarian about the medication for rabies.

Answer 10

Like any vaccination, a rabies shot takes time to build resistence within the immune system. If you can find the possum and it my be examined for evidence of rabies.