Despite the fact that rabies in dogs has been eradicated in many parts of the world, it is still essential to know in depth what it is, its symptoms and treatments, because this disease seriously affects the lives of the animals that suffer from it, and In the same way, it compromises the health of the humans who contract it. In this article you will learn how Rabies is spread in Dogs, its symptoms and treatment.
What is Rabies in Dogs?
Rabies is a deadly viral infection that mainly affects animals of the canine species. However, other mammals, birds and even humans can be carriers, since it is also a zoonotic disease (a disease that an animal can infect a human being). Rabies is a virus that belongs to the family Rhabdoviridae and it is found in all parts of the world, with the exception of Australia, Antarctica, England, Scandinavia and Japan as a result of rigorous and preventive measures that have been taken in these nations for its total eradication.
This disease harms the central nervous system of the sufferer. After the transmission of the virus through the bite, the virus advances and spreads throughout the body, thus causing excess salivation that can infect others if it is in contact with mucus or open wounds. Once symptoms begin to develop, the disease may be incurable and cause death. Therefore, it is very necessary as a preventive measure, vaccination. Even after death, the disease can be in the infected animal or person for up to 24 hours.
How is it spread?
As previously mentioned, there are two ways someone can be contaminated with the rabies virus; the first is through the bite of an infected animal, and the other, which is less frequent, through contact of mucus or open wound with the animal's saliva. However, other forms of contagion are still being investigated, such as the possibility of person-to-person transmission or transmission through the ingestion of raw meat or other tissues of previously infected animals.
Since dogs are the most likely to contract this disease, precautions must be taken to prevent an unfortunate event from happening. Once symptoms of rabies have appeared and infection is established, the outcome can be fatal. For that reason, a previous vaccine will always be the greatest combatant of this evil. Other pets, such as cats and rabbits, also require the necessary prevention to prevent them from contracting this virus.
As is well known, other animals can also have the virus, these are: raccoons, skunks, foxes and even bats. Although in Asia and Africa dogs are the main transmitters of the rabies virus, in North America, South America and Western Europe, bats are the main cause of infection of this disease.
What are the phases of rabies?
Because it is a viral infection, rabies has phases in which it can be detected if your pet has been infected by this pathology. At the beginning, after the bite has occurred, the virus enters the body and manages to lodge in the muscles and tissues. From that, it begins to spread in the central nervous system of the animal, since we are talking about a neurotropic virus, that is, one that has a high capacity to infect nerve cells.
Canine rabies is divided into four phases: incubation, prodromal, aggressiveness, and paralysis.
- Incubation: This period is the time from exposure to the virus to the manifestation of the first symptoms. During incubation, the pathogenic agent that causes rabies does not show signs to the animal that it is infected, it feels well and does not show symptoms of said disease. Incubation periods for rabies can last up to six months in extreme cases, but typically take between 3 and 8 weeks.
- Prodromal: Once the virus has had its incubation period, in this phase the first noticeable changes in the dog's behavior begin to be seen, such as; nervousness, anxiety, isolation and tiredness. In the same way, physically a series of discomforts arise such as; diarrhea, vomiting, fevers, chills, and lack of appetite. In dogs that are usually aggressive on a daily basis, the effect is the opposite, they become more affectionate and gentle. The prodromal phase usually lasts between 2 to 10 days.
- Aggressiveness: in the phase of aggressiveness or phase of acute encephalitis, it is in which the most well-known symptoms are evident, after having been uncomfortable and evasive, it can be noticed that the dog is easily irritated, becoming abrupt, even biting the people or animals around you. However, there are dogs that skip this stage and go on to the last one, never showing signs of aggressiveness. This phase can last from 3 to 7 days.
- Paralysis: the paralysis phase or also known as the rabies encephalitis phase, is the last stage of this virus. In this, the animal presents paralysis and spasms in the head and neck that can even lead it to enter a coma, and then die from heart and respiratory failure. Although it is considered the final stage of rabies, it is very common for dogs not to reach it, because they die earlier.
What are the general symptoms of Canine Rabies?
After the virus has completed its incubation period, the first symptoms begin to appear in the infected dog. On the other hand, in humans the incubation period ends 3 to 6 weeks after the bite. Although the virus mainly affects the central nervous system, not all patients present the same symptoms. The most prominent symptoms of canine rabies are:
- General discomfort
- Vomiting
- Fever
- Headache
- Seizures
- Excessive salivation
- Lack of appetite or inability to swallow
- Paralysis
- Swelling
- Irritability
- Aggressiveness
- Apathy
- Hydrophobia (aversion to water)
- Photophobia (aversion to light)
One of the symptoms that manifests first is fever. When noticing several of these symptoms in your pet, it is necessary and mandatory to visit a veterinarian, because rabies is usually confused with other diseases of the animal world. The prevention and care of our pets is our responsibility so as not to compromise our health, or that of others.
Types of Rabies
As a consequence of the ignorance of the symptoms and characteristics of the rabies virus, there are many beliefs that there is only one way for this virus to manifest itself, however, there are two types of rabies; one, which is mute rage and the other, which is furious rage.
Characteristics of silent rabies
Contrary to what most people think, dumb rabies is the most common among dogs. This rage is characterized by causing paralysis of the muscles of the neck, head, legs, among others. When the paralysis affects the diaphragm, the animal dies instantly from respiratory failure. Among the most outstanding features are:
- Trouble eating solid food
- Tiredness
- Immobility when walking
- Constant and excessive salivation
- dullness
- Paralysis of the lower jaw causing the mouth to be constantly open
Characteristics of furious rage
Although this type of rabies is not so common in dogs, it is extremely dangerous for both humans and other animals, since the dog is very aggressive and tends to bite anyone who crosses its path. Among the most noticeable symptoms are:
- Seizures
- Irritability
- Aggressiveness
- Hydrophobia (fear of water)
- Hypersensitivity to stimuli, such as light and noise
- Insomnia
- Disorientation
- Excessive salivation, especially around the snout
- Agitation
- Discomfort
How is this virus diagnosed?
A safe and reliable diagnosis of rabies can only be obtained when the animal has died, however, there are ways to detect if your pet has this disease. The main thing is to take the dog to a trusted veterinarian, who will make a tentative diagnosis according to the symptoms observed and the previous clinical history, such as: if the animal has already been vaccinated against rabies, is salivating excessively or shows behaviors aggressive for no reason.
If you are certain that your pet has been in contact with other stray or wild animals and you suspect that it may have been bitten, remain calm. First of all, you should look for some sign of a bite wound, if so, you should not be alarmed, but keep an eye out for any strange change in the dog's behavior. You need to remember the above symptoms.
At the slightest doubt of suspicion that a stray animal near you is infected with rabies, you should remain calm and call the relevant authorities in your country to take care of this. Finally, if a wild animal or a domestic animal bites you, it is essential to wash the wound with plenty of soap and water and then go immediately to a doctor. There it will be determined whether or not it is necessary for you to receive anti-rabies treatment.
In ancient times, rabies in dogs was diagnosed by immunofluorescence tests, which served to demonstrate the presence of the virus in brain tissues, but to carry it out the use of euthanasia was required in the animal. Today, the rabies virus cannot be diagnosed before clinical symptoms appear, however, the veterinarian has the authority to quarantine the animal if necessary. After that, a series of serological analyzes are carried out to verify the presence of the virus in the dog.
quarantine for rabies
In the presence of an animal bite, there is a protocol to carry out a quarantine for rabies, in order to mitigate the risk of contagion of this disease to other animals or people. First, an initial evaluation of the case must be carried out and it must be kept under constant observation for a period of 14 days, in order to ensure that the animal is not infected with the virus even if it has not presented symptoms. If the case is positive, an epidemiological investigation period of 20 days is carried out.
Which is the treatment?
At present, canine rabies still has no cure or treatment, because being a silent disease during the first months of contagion, when the symptoms of the virus appear in stage 2 or 3, it is usually too late. . In some countries it is even illegal to treat a dog with rabies since there is a high risk of contagion among the people who come to care for it. Consequently, it is very common for veterinarians to recommend the euthanasia of animals that are infected in order to avoid the spread of the virus and the suffering of the animal.
However, in the event that a human is infected with this virus through a bite, the main thing to do is thoroughly wash the infected area for at least 15 minutes with soap and water or povidone-iodine. . After this, it is necessary to go to a medical center to proceed with the application of the rabies vaccine. Although the prognosis in humans is not the most ideal either, with good medical attention the virus can be prevented from entering the central nervous system.
Post-exposure prophylaxis
According to the World Health Organization, post-exposure prophylaxis is the treatment required after a bite from an infected animal. Its main purpose is to combat the infection, thus preventing it from entering the nervous system causing immediate death. Post-exposure prophylaxis consists of three steps:
- Deep cleaning in conjunction with local wound treatment as soon as possible after exposure to the virus.
- Application of the rabies vaccine in accordance with the standards established by the WHO.
- If indicated by medical personnel, administration of anti-rabies immunoglobulin.
An effective and safe treatment prevents the appearance of the first symptoms and, subsequently, death. Depending on the level of exposure with the suspected infected animal, three post-exposure prophylactic measures are recommended:
- Type I: if you have only touched or fed presumably rabid animals and even if the animal has only licked you on intact skin, it is not necessary to take any relevant sanitary measures.
- Type II: In the event that there has been a bite, scratch or slight erosion on exposed skin, immediate vaccination and local treatment of the wound is necessary.
- Type III: if there were one or several bites and scratches that managed to penetrate the dermis, in addition to licks on injured skin; mucosal contamination and contact with bats the required measure is rapid vaccination, administration of antirabies immunoglobulin and local treatment of the wound.
Rabies Vaccine Side Effects
The rabies vaccine consists of introducing a small amount of the virus that causes the disease into the dog. This small dose is responsible for activating our pet's antibodies so that they remain alert to a possible risk of contagion of the rabies virus. However, it is very common for the virus to enter the dog causing side effects, such as; fever and vomiting, if this were the case immediate assistance is recommended before a veterinary medical staff.
Prevention
As mentioned above, so far no cure or treatment has been found for rabies once symptoms of the disease begin to appear. Therefore, the most responsible thing that can be done is to give our pet the rabies vaccine to protect it and, in the same way, protect our environment. The best prevention against rabies is taking care of your pet.
This vaccine is given to the dog after the first 3 months of life, then it must be reinforced annually or as indicated in the dog's vaccination schedule so that the body remains protected against rabies. However, if it is observed that our pet has been bitten by another dog, you should go immediately to qualified personnel to attend to it, since the vaccine is not always 100% effective.
awareness about rage
If you want to reduce the spread of rabies in humans, it is extremely necessary to educate the population, both children and adults, about the behavior of dogs and how to prevent bites. It is essential to make the most vulnerable communities aware of the responsibility that having a pet entails and the timely care that should be given to it, such as; vaccination, avoid unsupervised contact with other stray or wild animals, and be aware of what to do if bitten.
What is the life expectancy of a dog with rabies?
Because the incubation phase of this virus varies, it is different in each organism depending on the severity of the bite and its location, it is highly inaccurate to determine how long a dog with rabies can live. However, it is roughly known that their life expectancy is relatively short, between 15 to 90 days. Similarly, once the rabies systems are manifested and the central nervous system has been infected, the dog may die within 7 to 10 days.
Facts and figures according to the World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is leading the project called “United against rabies”. The main goal of this project is to ensure that there are no human deaths from rabies by 2030. One of the most outstanding recommendations of the WHO is the deep and immediate washing of the wound with soap and water if there has been contact with an animal that possibly has the rabies virus, because thousands of deaths are recorded annually around the world, mainly in African and Asian countries, due to rabies.
The possibility of eradicating this disease lies in the preventive vaccination of domestic and street dogs. 99% of cases of rabies transmission to humans are caused by dogs, these animals are the main source of infection. Although it is a vaccine-preventable disease, it affects more than 150 countries worldwide. The World Health Organization aims to lower the rate of people infected by this virus in the world, since 40% of human cases infected with rabies are children under 15 years of age.
Conclusion
Once the first symptoms of the rabies virus have been evidenced, there is no cure or treatment to combat it, the consequence is fatal and irreversible. We must bear in mind that this condition is only transmitted through contact with the saliva of the infected animal. Although the general symptoms of rabies include aggressiveness, a rabid dog does not always behave aggressively and with excessive salivation. Sometimes symptoms can present as isolation, fear, exhaustion, and submission. Preventive vaccination of your dog according to the vaccination schedule will always reduce the risk of infection by this virus.
In addition, the periodic visit of your pet to the veterinarian is essential to ensure the health of her, yours and that of those you love. In the event of any bite from an animal, the first thing you should do is disinfect your dog's wound thoroughly and then go as soon as possible to qualified personnel to help him. Do not forget that even though your dog has been vaccinated against rabies, he will be quarantined for 14 to 20 days to see if he shows any symptoms of this virus. If this is not the case, despite the fact that it sounds cruel, it is best to put it down, because it means a risk of contagion for other animals and people.
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