Although rabies in household pets is not very common, especially in urban areas, it is important to be aware of the signs and symptoms and make sure your pets are up to date with vaccines to stay protected.
According to the Arizona Animal Wellness Center, dogs and cats should each have a rabies vaccination. For dogs, it should be administered once every three years after their initial puppy series. The puppy series includes a vaccine at 16 weeks and another booster a year later. For cats, they should also receive the vaccine every three years after the initial.
Like mentioned before, rabies is not very common, especially in Arizona. This year so far, there have only been 100 confirmed positive cases, and none of those 100 were in domestic animals, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.
Even though the chances of your pet getting rabies is very low, it is important to know the symptoms. Rabies can be a fatal disease and can be transferred to humans, so it is important to take immediate action if you do suspect your pet has contracted rabies.
Some symptoms include:
Fever
Seizures
Paralysis
Change in tone of bark
Lack of coordination
Unusual aggression
Excessive salivation or frothy saliva
The symptoms are similar in both dogs and cats. An animal that does test positive with rabies will be quarantined for a period of time, depending on the severity of the disease. Unvaccinated animals that contract rabies will almost always die, which is why it is so important to get your pets vaccinated.
If you have any further questions about rabies in your household pets, or ever suspect that your pet has rabies, please call us at (602) 559-9600.