Ten days is usually enough for the quarantine of an animal that has
bitten someone. The reason for this is because in order for the virus
to be in the saliva (rabies has a very unique transmission mechanism)
it must have come from the brain, via the trigeminal nerve. Closely
observing an animal for 10 days for neurological signs is sufficient,
since it is already very sick by the time it can transmitt the virus.
This only holds for vaccinated animals, since the chances it has rabies
is pretty slim. Unvaccinated animals must be killed and their brains
tested for the virus, and the bite victim must undergo postexposure
treatment.
Unvaccinated pets that have been bitten by a wild animal have 2 paths.
1) be killed or 2) undergo strict quarantine for 6 months. This
quarantine period is to account for the drastic difference in rabies
incubation periods which you already know about. I came up with this
off the top of my head, but every year the Journal of the American
Veterinary Medical Association publishes the official rabies guidelines.
Rabies is a nasty disease - that's why it is so highly regulated.
Hope this helps. Look in JAVMA for the official poop.
Ana Maria Soler-Rodriguez wrote:
>> Ian:
> There seems to be sporadic appearances of rabies every year in Texas, where I live. Right now there
> seems to be an outbreak in south east Texas, I live in Houston. I don't know how big the outbreak
> is but it is under control. We are sometimes visited by raccons and bats, so the carriers are out there.I
> know this because a couple of days ago my 18 month old boy was bitten by a neighbor's dog. (Nasty
> little white poodle. Sorry if you have a poodle) My son had three bleeding scratches on his right index
> finger. The doctor put him on antibiotics for ten days.(for the other yucky stuff the dog may have had in
> its mouth or any others that might enter the body through the open scratches). The dog was up to date
> on its vaccines, nevertheless by Texas Law it was quarantined for ten days, just in case of rabies. For
> what a have read on this post, 10 days may not be ehough. So far, so good, but I keep an eye on that
> dog.
>> ********************************
> Ana Maria Soler-Rodriguez
>arodri03 at interserv.com> ********************************
