Stray Cat?

Question

If a stray cat bites you, would it show signs of rabies soon after that? What are some symtoms? How soon should it start showing signs?

Answer 1

I assume you mean the cat.

Signs of rabies in animals may include having excessive saliva or sometimes foaming at the mouth, paralysis, or behavioral changes in your pet (such as shyness when the pet was friendly) or no fear of humans in a wild animal.

Rabies infection in humans begins with vague symptoms such as fever, cough, or sore throat followed in several days by more serious and rapidly progressing symptoms such as restlessness, hallucinations, and seizures. The final stage is coma and death.

The incubation period—the time from exposure to the rabies virus until symptoms appear—is usually 4 to 6 weeks. In rare cases, the incubation period can last from several days to more than a year after exposure to the virus.

If you are concerned that you may have been exposed to the rabies virus, it is important to seek medical attention before symptoms develop. Rabies is nearly always fatal if not treated before the appearance of symptoms.

Answer 2

Uh....you mean if it got rabies from you? (Sorry, the way you phrased it really made it confusing).

A cat infected with rabies shows it within ten days. Rabies ends up locking the throat muscles so they can't swallow, but there are other signs. That's why an animal is quarantined for 10 days, the vets watch to see if anything develops.

Not all strays have rabies, in fact only a very VERY small percentage actually do get it. Any city has only a few cases a year with animals and most of those are skunks, foxes and bats, not domestic animals. The chances it had rabies is pretty small.

Answer 3

Signs and Symptoms

The symptoms of rabies typically appear about 4 days after the bite occurs. But in rare cases, symptoms don't show up for more than a year.

One of the most distinctive signs of a rabies infection is a tingling or twitching sensation around the area of the animal bite. It is often accompanied by a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and fatigue.

As the infection progresses, someone infected with rabies may develop any of the following symptoms:

* irritability
* excessive movements or agitation
* confusion
* hallucinations
* aggressiveness
* bizarre or abnormal thoughts
* muscle spasms
* abnormal postures
* seizures (convulsions)
* weakness or paralysis (when a person cannot move some part of the body)
* extreme sensitivity to bright lights, sounds, or touch
* increased production of saliva or tears
* difficulty speaking

In the advanced stage of the infection, as it spreads to other parts of the nervous system, other symptoms may develop:

* double vision
* problems moving facial muscles
* abnormal movements of the diaphragm and muscles that control breathing
* difficulty swallowing and increased production of saliva, causing the "foaming at the mouth" usually associated with a rabies infection

If you have been bitten by a rabid animal but show no symptoms, take the following steps right away:

* Wash the bite area with soap and water for 10 minutes and cover the bite with a clean bandage.
* Immediately call your doctor and go to a nearby emergency department. Anyone with a rabies infection must be treated in a hospital.
* Call local animal-control authorities to help find the animal that caused the bite. The animal may need to be detained and observed for signs of rabies.
* If you know the owner of the rabid animal that has bitten your child, get all the information about the animal, including vaccination status and the owner's name and address. Notify your local health department, particularly if the animal hasn't been vaccinated.
* If you suspect that your child has been bitten by an unknown dog, bat, rat, or other animal, contact your child's doctor immediately, or take your child to the emergency department.
* Vaccinate your pets: Cats, dogs, and ferrets can be infected by rabies.

Answer 4

rabies takes a long time to develop - you can only get it if the cat broke your skin - if the cat was rabid you dont have much time to get help for yourself and should start treatments now because once it has entered your body it starts working its way slowly to the brain and once you have symptoms its too late to treat.

if possible catch the cat and it would go to local shelter for a 10 days RABIES hold.

Answer 5

First, you should be as concerned about infection as rabies. Second, is cat still in area? You should contact animal control and they will try to trap it. It must be tested for rabies. Do this now.

Answer 6

Lady at my work got bit before and when she came to work the next day her hand had ballooned up.
She made an appointment that morning and went in that afternoon. i assume it happened sunday, so id say within a day or less, you will see something.

Answer 7

get a rabies vaccination immidiatly

Answer 8

it don't matter if you have symptom you probally have rabies i would get the shots

Answer 9

i WOULD GO TO THE VET IF YOU ARE WORRIED.
NOT ALL STRAY CATS HAVE LOADS OF DISEASES.