Can anyone theorized why the animal control officer has not picked up the dog yet after one week?
I would think that since I reported it Monday the 30th it should have been seen and taken in to confinement no later than the following day. I mean it was a bite that broke skin…seems serious enough to me…
IF the animal is current in rabies, there is no need to do a severe quarantine. If a vaccinated dog (or cat) bites a human, especially if it is not showing any other signs associated with rabies (neurological signs, that is), then it doesn’t have to be destroyed. It has to be quarantined (which your owner may be doing in his own house) for 10 days, and if at the end of that period, there is no progression, no signs of rabies, the animal is in the clear. No need to kill the animal. That is the SOP in most places, that is the SOP taught in vet schools when they cover rabies public health.
IF the appropriate public health authorities in the area know about your case (animal control, your local public health MD or DVM), they probably already checked with the animal’s veterinarian for the records. And the veterinarian likely released those to them and demonstrated that the dog was current in his rabies vaccine.
Lastly, in many counties/parishes, it is mandatory to be rabies-vaccinated (they give a certificate). And even in places where it is not mandatory, rabies vaccine, unlike others, comes with its own tag and its own receipt and unique number. I have official receipts stating my dog got her rabies from lot so-and-so, on the date such-and-such, next dose in so-and-so day, and tag number xyz123. Administration and documentation of that vaccine is very thorough.
It seems to me the Michigan protocol states a dog that has bitten a human gets 10 days confinement regardless of vaccination status. The dog bite protocol is the second document in that link.
Correct, and thank you. Again, in that case, that’s probably the reason why nobody has picked up the dog (assuming the owner is keeping with the terms of the confinement). I know that some jurisdictions may push more towards the “euthanize and test”, particularly if the animal is unvaccinated (or has neurological signs).
The sad thing is that I just got off the phone with my brother who for those who may have missed it is neighbor to the owner of the dog that bit my kid. He said the dog was in his driveway wagging her tail.
So on one hand its good that the dog appears healthy, but bad because the dog is not under confinement by its owner…
Have the authorities involved with this confirmed vaccination status to you? What has animal control told you about what is being done with the dog? Is the dog required to be quarantined? What are the applicable leash laws in the area where the dog lives? Has your brother called AC to report the dog at large?
It’s a dog bite. Your kid will get over it if you stop making a huge deal about it.
Manicman, I was bitten by a dog last year, and as in your case, the skin was broken, but the bite was not severe.
After a few days, I saw a doctor- just in case. Not to scare you, but to inform you, he took this very seriously. He told me that the human mortality rate for rabies was 100%. Period.
I did not want to get my friends and their dog in hot water, and with regards to quarrantine, he was satisfied that I could access this dog at any time, should it become necessary.
His advise was that if the dog was rabid at the time of the bite, the dog would show the signs during the quarrantine period.
And the signs would show later than that in the person bitten.
His other point, again, not to scare you, was that by the time a human showed signs, it is too late.
Keep tabs on that dog, for 10 days.
Best wishes.
I think your missing my point. I don’t trust some computer generated document from an individual who has proven to be dishonest. As a precaution what I seek is confirmation from a higher authority that the dog was vaccinated sometime one the past 3 years prior to my kid being bitten.
What I have learned is that this doesn’t really exist. The health department doesn’t keep track of rabies vaccinations. Buy what they did tell me was to have my brother keep an eye on the dog for 10 days. If she shows signs of rabies then we act. If not my son is going to be ok. It’s pretty much standard procedure. Rather than grabbing every dog that nips a kid and placing a burden on resourcesthey have the dog observed by the owner for signs that the dog is falling ill.
So there appears to be wiggle room when the bite just breaks the skin.
The AC did say the owner was to issued a citation…
And my kid is fine already. But as a parent I can’t afford to let the possibility of my child getting rabies exist. As a parent I tend to go overboard in cases like this and especially when someone lies to me, drags his feet, is rude, and doesn’t provide a rock solid document that proves his dog was vaccinated.
Yep thank you. The health department basically said the same thing. The animal control officer didnt really explain this to me very well. Add in the pet owner being a dishonest prickly and i was getting very frustrated. However, since talking with the health department yesterday afternoon my wife and I can finally rest easy. It just took a week of sweating and i don’t feel that any parent should have to go through that.
Unless the kid dies. You don’t get over that.
Unless your son was bit by a skunk or a bat, it appears he’s not in any danger.
It definitely looks to be the case, but I wouldn’t be worthy of the term “father” if I went by appearances.
Unless the dog was bitten by a bat or skunk.
Can an animal contract rabies if it eats an infected critter?
I recall some episode on Discovery channel where this guy’s snake attacked and almost killed him. It was some kind of python. He was being interviewed and said that when he was being treated for the snake bites that they gave him rabies shots…and it was explained to him that they had to vaccinate him since the animals he was feeding Rosco might have been infected with rabies (rodents and such).
Then take your child for a series of rabies shots and be done with it. :smack:
Other than the fact the dog bit your child, it doesn’t seem you have any reason to suspect that the dog is ill in any manner. All animals with a mouth will bite. It happens, it was an accident. It may be possible that the animal isn’t up to date, or that the owner lost the tag and the county can’t find the record etc… NONE of that means that the dog was rabid and your child is going to die. Sheesh.
Reptiles do not carry rabies, that was an overkill; and senseless precaution by the doctors or EMTs.
Depending on the country, and how recently the snake was fed, the fear would be more that the rodents were shedding the virus and somehow some of that lingered in the snake prior to bite the person. Very tenous connection. I’d be more concern with the fact he was handling the (potentially rabid) rodents more than the snake ate them and then bit him. But I don’t remember discussing a case like that on the public health lectures, and I doubt it happened in the US now or recently (there was a vaccine shortage a while back, they became very careful with whom they were giving the vaccines).
I am using this 10 day period to do all that I can to prevent the need to put my kid through those shots. Recall via reading comprehension that he is very young. This past week I spent trying to find the best definitive proof that his mongrel was up to date.
And this animal has (according to my brother, and a different neighbor) a history of fighting with other dogs…and snapping at other kids. So it may have been an “accident” but the Fucking owner is negligent.
Human-aggressive behavior and problems would have more importance than rabies status in many, if not most jurisdictions. The problem there won’t be solved by a current vaccination status, and that would be more an animal control (or police) report instead of a public health issue (as it would be more with rabies).
Also, the fact that he gave you an excel spreadsheet with the vaccination info is more than what would be expected, as the owner has no obligation to show anything like that to you. That would be something the owner (or the dog’s veterinarian) would have to deal with the appropriate authorities, not you. In the particular county, it seems the animal control office is unconcerned enough to use the “wait 10 days and if nothing happens, dog is in the clear” approach, although that doesn’t do anything with the aggressive behavior (which should be reported if it hasn’t already). If they’re treating it that way, so should you.
Again, vaccination status doesn’t matter much if the dog has bitten a human (mostly only clinical signs matter), and in some jurisdictions with very low sylvatic rabies, they may not be at all concerned about that possibility.