Rabies

If you’ve been in contact with any wildlife or unfamiliar animals, particularly if you’ve been bitten or scratched, you should talk with a healthcare or public health professional to determine your risk for rabies or other illnesses. Wash any wounds immediately with soap and water and then contact your health care provider and report the bite to El Paso County Public Health.(It’s important to know that, unlike most other animals that carry rabies, many types of bats have very small teeth which may leave marks that disappear quickly. If you are unsure, seek medical advice to be safe.)

Rabies affects only mammals. Mammals are warm-blooded animals with fur. People are also mammals. Birds, snakes, and fish are not mammals, so they can’t get rabies and they can’t give it to you. But any mammal can get rabies, including people. While rabies is rare in people in the United States, with only 1 to 3 cases reported annually, about 60,000 Americans get post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) each year to prevent rabies infection after being bitten or scratched by an infected or suspected infected animal.

In the United States, more than 90% of reported cases of rabies in animals occur in wildlife. The wild animals that most commonly carry rabies in the United States are raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. Contact with infected bats is the leading cause of human rabies deaths in this country; at least 7 out of 10 Americans who die from rabies in the US were infected by bats. People may not recognize a bat scratch or bite, which can be very small, but these types of contact can still spread rabies.

Pets (like cats and dogs) and livestock (like cattle and horses) can also get rabies. Nearly all the pets and livestock that get rabies had not received vaccination or were not up to date on rabies vaccination. Most pets get rabies from having contact with wildlife.

You can’t tell if an animal has rabies by just looking at it—the only way to know for sure if an animal (or a person) has rabies is to perform laboratory testing. However, animals with rabies may act strangely. Some may be aggressive and try to bite you or other animals, or they may drool more than normal. (This is sometimes shown in movies as animals “foaming at the mouth.”) But not all animals with rabies will be aggressive or drooling. Other animals may act timid or shy, move slowly or act tame, or let you get close to them. Because that’s not the way wild animals usually act, you should remember that something could be wrong. Some animals may not appear ill. For the health and safety of wildlife, your pets, and yourself, leave wild animals alone, including baby animals.

There are several things you can do to protect your pet from rabies. These include making sure your pets get regular rabies vaccines, keeping pets away from wild animals, spaying or neutering pets, and calling animal control to remove stray animals from your neighborhood.

Postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) consists of a dose of human rabies immune globulin (HRIG) and rabies vaccine given on the day of the rabies exposure, and then a dose of vaccine given again on days 3, 7, and 14. For people who have never been vaccinated against rabies previously, postexposure prophylaxis (PEP) should always include administration of both HRIG and rabies vaccine. The combination of HRIG and vaccine is recommended for both bite and non-bite exposures, regardless of the interval between exposure and initiation of treatment.

People who have been previously vaccinated or are receiving pre-exposure vaccination for rabies should receive only vaccine.

Rabies is a fatal disease that can be spread from wild animals like raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes to a person or pet by a bite or scratch, even if very small or barely noticeable. There is medication available for exposed people that will prevent rabies infection.

Take Precautions

• Vaccinate your pets and/or livestock against rabies by using a licensed veterinarian. It is required by city and county statute that all cats and dogs have a rabies vaccination by a licensed veterinarian. Rabies shots need to be boosted, so check your pet’s records or with your veterinarian.
• When walking or hiking with your dog, protect them and wildlife by keeping your dog on a leash.
• Keep cats and other pets inside at night to reduce the risk of exposure to other domestic animals and wildlife. Keep dogs within your sight (in a fenced yard, or on leash) during the day while outside.
• Contact your veterinarian promptly if you believe your pet has been exposed to a wild animal.
• Do not touch or feed wild animals. Wild animals like skunks and foxes adapt to residential environments if food is available – please don’t leave pet food outdoors.
• If you or a family member is bitten or scratched by a wild or unknown animal, call your doctor and El Paso County Public Health at (719) 578-3220.
• If you encounter a lost or stray dog or cat, contact the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region for options (719) 473-1741.
• To report an animal bite from a domestic or wild animal, go to https://www.elpasocountyhealth.org/report-an-animal-bite

How to recognize sick wildlife

• Healthy wild animals are normally afraid of humans.
• Sick animals often do not run away when spotted by people.
• Wildlife suffering from rabies will often act aggressively and violently approach people or pets.
• However, sometimes rabid animals are overly quiet and passive and want to hide. If they are hiding, leave them alone. Rabid wildlife might also stumble or have trouble walking.
• Report sick or diseased animals to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife at (719) 227-5200.

• Healthy wild animals are normally afraid of humans.
• Sick animals often do not run away when spotted by people.
• Wildlife suffering from rabies will often act aggressively and violently approach people or pets.
• However, sometimes rabid animals are overly quiet and passive and want to hide. If they are hiding, leave them alone. Rabid wildlife might also stumble or have trouble walking.
• Report sick or diseased animals to the Colorado Parks and Wildlife at (719) 227-5200.