oh my gosh my dog killed a opossum!!!!?

Question

ok ok...im trying to calm down...but holy crap my dog killed a opossum!!! She hasnt had any shots and shes about a year old!!! We live in Tx and there are many animals around and im freaking out now!!! You always here about cases of rabies and what should i do now!?!? Should i take the dog to the vet? Ive played with her and she has bitten me b4...(no blood) Crap...im still freaking out....the opossum is in my backyard DEAD!!! you should have seen its tail!!! It was so scary!!!!

Answer 1

Call your vet- if you have the animal's corpse, they can test it for rabies. If not, your dog may need to be quarantined. I think this goes without saying but- time to get your dog it's rabies shot!

Answer 2

Yep, that happened to me. MY MUTTS KILLED A RABBIT AND HAD IT'S HEAD ON THE FRONT PORCH!!!! You could see the brain, all that nasty crap! I almost threw up!!! But it's natural for a dog to kill an animal...or two...or even 7! But don't worry. Just ask a friend(a boy) or a neighbour to pick it up and throw it away. Then get your dog and take her to get some shots...everything!!! She could get infected, by telling what opossums eat, do, and hang around. You shouldn't take any chances on not getting shots. It could be more serious than you think.

Answer 3

get the opossum out of the sun & into ice or something cool & find out where to take it to be tested ASAP!!!

even if your dog did have shots it would be a good idea to boost the rabies after an encounter with a wild animal.

opossums seldom carry rabies because their normal body temperature is lower than most other mammals.

There is just NO reason to have any pet without ALL vaccines kept current. I certainly hope you have learned a lesson

Answer 4

The likelihood of the possum having rabies is very small and the likelihood that it has passed it on to your dog (and then your dog on to you) is even smaller. I think you can rest a bit easier. This paper tells you about rabies in texas. You may want to contact local authorities but the guidelines on this paper indicate that exposure to possums in TX do not warrent a PEP.
http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/idcu/disease/rabies/information/prevention/pamphlet/prevention.pdf

Risk Category of
Biting Animal
Low
(mice, rats, squirrels, nutria,
rabbits, opossums, armadillos,
shrews, prairie dogs, beavers,
gophers, and other rodents)
Testing is not required
unless the Local Rabies
Control Authority
(LRCA) or physician has
cause to believe the
animal is rabid.
Not applicable
Testing or PEP is not required unless the
LRCA or physician has cause to believe the
biting animal is rabid.

That being said, you should get your dog vaccinated. I'm not a big believer in vaccines, but that's one I would not skip. If your dog ever did get rabies, it's an automatic death sentance for her so a vaccine is a small price to pay.

Answer 5

I live in Louisiana. Your dog should be fine, but if you are really worried put the dead opossum in a large garbage bag and take it and the dog to the vet. they can check the opossom and treat the dog if need be. I would also get her shots. One of mine just resently got into it with a 'coon that was too close to the house. In November two of mine killed a bobcat that was trying to get on my porch. They are fine.

Answer 6

Take your dog to the vet, along with the opossum for testing. Besides the rabies issue, the opossum likely had parasites which your dog could also get. It's what's safest for your dog and you. And get your dog the rabies vaccination!

Answer 7

I would not be worried if the dog had all its shots. Because it doesnt have any shots i reccommend you take it to the vet today and if not today tommorow. Do not ignore your dog but DO NOT let it bite you!!!!! If the opossum has rabies it could infect your dog or you. Try to calm yourself down because your dog will sense your stress. I hope your dog is ok. Good luck i know i love my pup to death so im sure you love yours too. PS. remember to watch your pup carefully outside!!

Answer 8

take your dog to the vet, get shots...I'm sure everything will turn out fine. And about the dead animal either throw it in the trash or put out where some bird, coon, or other animal (hopefully not dog) will eat it. My dog kills things ALL the time... raccoons, opposums, squirrel, a bat, snakes, and recently a baby bird ( no I don't live in the country),but my dog has all of his shots so he's ok.

Answer 9

You should take your dog to the vet ASAP ... and wrap the opossum up and take that too, in case the vet wants to 'test it' to see if it had rabies. BE SURE THAT YOUR DOG GETS IT'S SHOTS and KEEP THEM UP TO DATE since you live in an area where there is 'lots of wildlife' ...

Answer 10

I used to have three Irish Wolfhounds that were all profound hunters where we lived in the country. They would dispatch anything they could catch, crows, rabbits, foxes & coyotes, and occasionally our neighbors ducks. Do you know if they're actually dead or just playing dead? It could be that she finds them (or the same one) and is curious and it gets scared and curls up. When my dogs would grab something I always knew because most of the time they would have blood on them somewhere or I would find their "prey" under the porch. It could be also that she wants to play, our Wolfie Jesse accidently killed a few duck by hitting them with his paw and accidently breaking their necks, and he could never figure out why they didn't get back up. He'd stand there and lick them and poke at them with his nose until he barked for one of us to come look. As long as your dogs shots are all up to date and she doesn't eat them I wouldn't worry too much.