Possible Rabies?

Question

Hi I posted a topic last night about my dog being scratched by a coyote. I took him to the vet and we found a puncture wound on his back. The vet gave him vaccines for Rabies and Distemper. He said that if it's reported in 24 hours the dog will be ok. I'm worried since I heard somewhere that once a dog is infected there is no turning back. It's also supposedly not possible to check for rabies in a dog. Is this true?

Also there were no symptoms. Dog was more or less the same, just seemed to be really scared from what happened.

Hello. He was also vaccinated for distemper and received antibiotics. He's not leaving the house at all.

Answer 1

Here is an excerpt from an article:
Clinical Presentation

After infection, the incubation period is highly variable, but lasts approximately 1-3 months. The disease progresses from a nonspecific prodromal phase to paresis or paralysis; spasms of swallowing muscles can be stimulated by the sight, sound, or perception of water (hydrophobia); delirium and convulsions can develop, followed rapidly by coma and death. No treatment is effective after the development of clinical signs, but the extremely rare case of recovery after extensive medical intervention offers hope that future experimental therapeutics may be developed (17-18).

You can read the full article:
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/yellowBookCh4-Rabies.aspx

If you're unsure or doubt what your vet has told you, you can call another vet and get their opinion.

Answer 2

What seems really important here is whether or not you told the Vet the truth about how long it was between when your dog was bitten and you got him to the Vet.
If your dog had a rabies shot before, and was overdue, it may be a reason your Vet said what he or she said. Most places would force a quarantine of your dog when bitten by an unidentified animal and your dog didn't have a current rabies vaccination.
Seems your Vet was saying that it was okay to give a dog a rabies shot after being bitten if within 24 hrs.
If the coyote was rabid, then it could take a few weeks or longer for your dog to show symptoms if it was infected because the coyote had rabies and you didn't actually get your dog to a Vet within 24 hrs.
There is a check to see if the dog is infected, but it involves KILLING THE DOG first because brain tissues have to be examined.
If you did not actually get your dog to the Vet in time, call the Vet back and ask what to do.

Answer 3

With Rabies, yes that is true. But Rabies is something that is so rarely seen "now-a-days" in coyotes, that you're probably in the clear.

You do want to watch also for signs of Distemper:
-Gooey eye and nose discharge
-Fever (which often comes and goes unnoticed)
-Poor appetite
-Coughing and the development of pneumonia
-Vomiting and diarrhea

If he hasn't had any signs within 7-14 days he should be okay.

If your vet hasn't given him antibiotics, it might be a good idea to get some. The main reason is that you don't want that wound to get infected.

If you want the full story about Rabies, email me.

Answer 4

Has your dog had any previous vaccinations against rabies? If so, then your dog should be fine, but quarantined at home for 10 days, handled, fed and cleaned by only one person (to prevent even more people getting involved). If not, then your dog is susceptible and you need to contact your local Health Department and Animal Control to get the specific information about what you need to do.

There is a test for rabies, but you won't like it...brain tissue needs to be tested and the animal killed to perform the test.

Answer 5

first it could take up to 2 weeks to show symptoms.
If just given Rabies and distemper my vet says it takes 2 weeks before effective.
teh only way to test for rabies is to kill the animal and have the head sent for the test, tehy have to disect teh brain to determine if rabies. and yes it can be done.
if the dog is infected there is no turning back.

Answer 6

I hope your pet will be OK and the vet is right. Keep him observed for the few days anyway,for the rabies incubation period may take some days depending on the place the animal was biten or scratched.

Answer 7

no. unless you had a cut or something that the rabies could have gone into your blood stream from it. (bad grammar lol sorry) but anyways, if you get flu like symptoms i would check with your doctor and tell him what happened and lol what an asshoollee ur brother is! hope everything works out! :)

Answer 8

Your dog would not show any signs for a week or two. That is why we have quarantine laws. (which is where your dog should be)
Just remember that when symptoms do appear Rabies is 100% fatal

Answer 9

I would believe the Vet. He is the most qualified.
There have been big advances in rabies treatment in the last few years, so believe the vet and rest easy!!!

Answer 10

I believe that an animal can only be tested for Rabies after it's dead.