Re: RC: Re: ridecamp-d Digest V00 #65

[Bette Lamore <woa@stormnet.com>]

Dear Michelle
This is an email I received from an expert in rabies. Perhaps this will
straighten out the misunderstanding between CONTRACTING rabies and being
a carrier who can give it to others. I believe there is a great deal of
misunderstanding about this and I hardly think that the zoo vet here is
incompetent; just perhaps more familiar with opossums than most vets who
handle less "exotic" animals (I prefer to think of Posse as exotic).
Something to think about. Isn't that what life is all about?

"Mice are what we used to incubate
rabies virus for testing.

They certainly do have rabies, but do not act as a
danger to other wild
life, probably because they die of the virus
without becoming an attack
animal. It is called Dumb Rabies.

We have only had possums in our area recently,
but I have never heard of a
rabid possum,  cats also tend to die before they
hit the attack stage.
Just get sick and curl up and die.

But that does not mean you cant get rabies from
a Dumb Rabies case, it just
means you won't be attacked, you have to
willingly inoculate yourself with
the virus from the sick or dead animal.

Joan Ruprecht (expert on rabid animals-any way
relative to many of us)
Public Health Microbiologist  now endurance rider."
Thanks, Joan, for the clarification.

Bette

MBlanchrd@aol.com wrote:
> 
> In a message dated 1/11/2000 5:13:11 AM Pacific Standard Time,
> ridecamp-d-request@endurance.net writes:
> 
> << Are you sure about the opossums? My small animal vet and the zoo vet
>  >here both said they can't carry rabies (nor do mice, for that matter) >>
> 
> Repeat after me...ALL mammals can carry rabies. All MAMMALS can carry rabies.
> ALL MAMMALS CAN CARRY RABIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> If your vet is telling you that possums and mice cannot, then I wonder WHAT
> vet school he or she received their DVM from, because that person is
> incompetant and possibly dangerous.
> Mice and possums are mammals AND
> ALL MAMMALS CAN CARRY RABIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> I don't mean to shout, but I cannot fathom why someone would not believe
> this. Misinformation like what your vet is telling you is dangerous,
> unprofessional and outright WRONG.
> Michelle
> MBlanchrd@aol.com
> 
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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.    
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/RideCamp   
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=