How Long Can You Wait to get Medical Attention, if You're Possibly Exposed Rabies?

[tarheelmjfan]

Yes, rabies is extremely rare in cats in the US, even feral ones. I'm not saying it's impossible, but the odds are pretty low.

There was an alert to inform our area of a cat with rabies in a town less than 10 miles away last month. I haven't heard of any other reports, but it's probably better to be safe than sorry. It does make me feel better that it's unlikely.

 

[BrianL]

There was an alert to inform our area of a cat with rabies in a town less than 10 miles away last month. I haven't heard of any other reports, but it's probably better to be safe than sorry. It does make me feel better that it's unlikely.

It is, but there can be outbreaks. I did a little reading and it's hard to pin down, but it still seems to be extremely rare. The cat would catch it from wild animals, possible a raccoon which are more likely carriers. Cat to human transmission is still unlikely, especially from a scratch as ther emust be fluid transmission. A bite would be more likely to transmit. I would say that if there was a notice of something nearby then I'd continue to follow up on it jsut to be safe, but try not to worry too much. Best wishes.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

It is, but there can be outbreaks. I did a little reading and it's hard to pin down, but it still seems to be extremely rare. The cat would catch it from wild animals, possible a raccoon which are more likely carriers. Cat to human transmission is still unlikely, especially from a scratch as ther emust be fluid transmission. A bite would be more likely to transmit. I would say that if there was a notice of something nearby then I'd continue to follow up on it jsut to be safe, but try not to worry too much. Best wishes.

Thanks. DH & I think he'll be fine, but when he worries, I worry. I just don't want to downplay anything, then live to regret it.

 

[Keetchino]

Gotta say, it was either last summer or the summer before, but our area had more cats test positive for rabies than any other animal. Unusual outbreak, however by outbreak I mean 3. Really low number, but there weren’t many positive cases to begin with.

 

[LSUmiss]

He'll be seeing a doctor somewhere in the morning. Hopefully, they'll consider everything.

Do you know that it is a feral cat? It could be someone’s outdoor cat that’s vaccinated.

 

[LSUmiss]

Gotta say, it was either last summer or the summer before, but our area had more cats test positive for rabies than any other animal. Unusual outbreak, however by outbreak I mean 3. Really low number, but there weren’t many positive cases to begin with.

Where is that?

 

[tarheelmjfan]

Do you know that it is a feral cat? It could be someone’s outdoor cat that’s vaccinated.

Sorry, I don't know much more than I've already posted. I don't think most places within his running distance are allowed to have outdoor cats. Naturally, there are always some who ignore the rules. In the five+ years we've lived here, a couple people in our neighborhood allowed their cats out to roam. Eventually, they were reported & threatened with fines & losing their pets. Those cats were tame though. They were probably reported, because people didn't want them to be runover. I would have to know where DS was running to know, if that area had similar laws/rules.

 

[Keetchino]

Where is that?

Outside of Buffalo NY. It wasn’t in the news or anything, I’m friends with the animal control officer, and we got on the subject after she was expressing surprise that *another* cat had tested positive in the county.

Edited to add: I screwed up in the time frame, this was like 4 summers ago. And I think I seriously misheard about more cats tested positive than other animals, that doesn’t sound right, I’m sure bats and raccoons outnumbered it

 

[diznygirl]

Here's a link to the Merck Vet Manual. The protocol is to put the suspected animal under observation for 10 days to see if it exhibits symptoms. If it does it is put down and a sample of gray matter is sent off for testing. Even if it has been vaccinated. If it's a stray then they jump right to testing.

That tells me ... it's not super critical to get a jump on this the same day. But definitely see a doctor as soon as possible.

I had a scare sorta like this as a kid, wrestled a mouse out of my cat's mouth and got properly bit by the little fellow. I'd just seen that Different Strokes episode with the rabid dog scare where they described the treatment for rabies and I was terrified. The doc told my folks over the phone not to sweat it and I'd be fine.

On the other hand, a cat rushing you unprovoked

This happened to me as a kid - got bit by a stray cat. They found the cat two weeks later - obviously not infected and I dodged a bullet. It’s not worth an ER visit, just clean the area well.

Here's a link to the Merck Vet Manual. The protocol is to put the suspected animal under observation for 10 days to see if it exhibits symptoms. If it does it is put down and a sample of gray matter is sent off for testing. Even if it has been vaccinated. If it's a stray then they jump right to testing.

That tells me ... it's not super critical to get a jump on this the same day. But definitely see a doctor as soon as possible.

I had a scare sorta like this as a kid, wrestled a mouse out of my cat's mouth and got properly bit by the little fellow. I'd just seen that Different Strokes episode with the rabid dog scare where they described the treatment for rabies and I was terrified. The doc told my folks over the phone not to sweat it and I'd be fine.

On the other hand, a cat rushing you unprovoked it aberrant behavior and a mouse biting the hand of its rescuer would be totally normal.

This happened to me as a kid - got bit by a stray cat. I was trying to rescue it from a dog. It was just freaked out and I got too close. They found the cat two weeks later - obviously not infected and I dodged a bullet. It’s not worth an ER visit, just clean the area well.

 

[LSUmiss]

Outside of Buffalo NY. It wasn’t in the news or anything, I’m friends with the animal control officer, and we got on the subject after she was expressing surprise that *another* cat had tested positive in the county.

Wow! Just wondering if it was a rural area.

 

[Keetchino]

Wow! Just wondering if it was a rural area.

just dug a bit to see if I could find anything online about it, 2 were in rural areas and the third was an area that is part rural/ part suburb. This was 2016.

 

[Keetchino]

The suburb one was actually in the news, and there was a quick blurb in the article stating “ a vaccine administered over a 14-day period will prevent the victim from contracting it [rabies]” So hope that helps answer the OP’s initial question

 

[Earstou]

A family member was bit by a bat about two months ago. They went to the health center about three days later (after much discussion and threats by friends, haha). Ended up with the series of shots because they released the bat and couldn't check it.
While the incidence of bats having rabies is very, very low, the problem is that rabies is usually fatal if the shots are not administered in a timely manner. The number that have survived is really low, like four. So a person needs to get medical assistance if there is any chance at all of rabies.

 

[littlejimmy]

i wouldn't worry about rabies. but what about cat scratch fever...

 

[firefly_ris]

Outside of Buffalo NY. It wasn’t in the news or anything, I’m friends with the animal control officer, and we got on the subject after she was expressing surprise that *another* cat had tested positive in the county.

Edited to add: I screwed up in the time frame, this was like 4 summers ago. And I think I seriously misheard about more cats tested positive than other animals, that doesn’t sound right, I’m sure bats and raccoons outnumbered it

I'm outside of Buffalo too, didn't know about that. I always wonder what the % effectiveness of the helicopter vax drops they do is and if domestic cats eat them. Haven't had much rabies interaction for the past couple years. I think the last time was 4 or 5 years ago for a rabid raccoon my neighbor dispatched for us.

 

[NannyBeBe]

I have an online friend who got cat scratch fever from a cat bite and took a long time to recover. Not anything to mess with.

 

[C&Jx2]

I’d be more concerned with ”cat scratch fever”. Make sure he cleans it well.

https://www.cdc.gov/bartonella/index.html

 

[AndreaDM]

I have an online friend who got cat scratch fever from a cat bite and took a long time to recover. Not anything to mess with.

yep, my nephew who’s now 33 almost lost his hand at age 2 to a cat scratch! He was hospitalized for a few weeks, it was awful.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

Cat bites can be really nasty. I agree with others that it's probably not rabies but if there is even a chance it's a bite he needs to clean it extremely well and keep a close eye on it. At the first sign of infection he needs to go to the doctor.

 

[easyas123]

I would be concerned about Cat Scratch Fever, which can be very serious.

I have an online friend who got cat scratch fever from a cat bite and took a long time to recover. Not anything to mess with.

People laugh - but I had a relative that got real sick from this.
Admittedly, we laughed at the time for a second - "what ??? that's not real!" but it was.