Question:
My 13 year old dog gave me a very small puncture wound on my finger the other day while I was giving her a treat (she was excited). It bled a little so I washed it and applied an antibiotic ointment. Later, I realized that she is overdue for her vaccination and should have had it in April. This was a one year vaccine and not a 3 year. Should I be worried about both of us?

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Unless your dog has been in a compromised circumstance (such as being new unknown animals, having been bitten) I wouldn't worry about it, but I would get her to the vet ASAP just to make sure that she's in good health and to get her vacines.

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Actually the way I understand it the 3 year and 1 year vaccines are the same, it is just some municipalities/states require that the vaccines are given yearly to ensure control in areas where the rabies risk is higher

http://www.zbirdbrain.com/PetAdvocat...pportStudy.htm

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Yes, we're taking her to the vet on Monday. My own doctor has already told me that I'm at very low risk, but, personally, I'm still concerned. The vaccince she was given is called Rabdomun 1, made by Schering Plough. http://www.spah.com/usa/index.cfm

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1. Getting your dog vaccinated isn't going to cure him if he already has rabies. And the only way to test for rabies is to do tests on brain material; ie, decapitate your dog. I don't think you want to do that.
2. Even though your vaccine is a one-year vaccine, like people, a dog's titre levels aren't always as calendar perfect as the vaccine makers say. This is why some people choose to have their dogs titre levels checked instead of having the vaccine. Just because the vaccine was "scheduled to wear off" by April does not necessarily mean that your dog was vulnerable.
3. If your dog hasn't had any contact by any animals who might be carrying rabies and isn't showing any signs of early-stage rabies, then you're fine. "After transmission, the virus travels to the central nervous system of the new host. The virus then undergoes a period of incubation, lasting days to years (on average, one to three months).
During the viral incubation period, the infected animal:
* Displays No Symptoms
* Cannot Transmit the Virus Through Saliva "
However, if you're concerned about your health, you should be on the phone to your local health authority saying that you need the Rabies Exposure Treatment. I'm not sure if they will do this for you without evidence of the animal that bit you having rabies, or now that it's past day 0 (exposure day), but you should call anyhow. See this link for more info: Human Rabies info
It is *IMPERATIVE* that you seek treatment right away, if you are concerned. If you do not, and you have rabies, it will kill you. There is no treatment once you have symptoms.

Hope that helped.
Melissa

Edited to add: Found another site that you should read: http://www.emedicinehealth.com/rabies/article_em.htm

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If you want to know, ask your vet for a titer test. He can test to see how much vaccine is left and if what is left is powerful enough to create an immunity to the virus.

But I agree with OG- there are no "three year" and "one year" vaccines. It's one vaccine and the vet can choose to give it to you every year or every three (which is the favored one scientifically, but causes financial difficulty for some vets).

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dogmelissa - Well, thanks for scaring the heck out of me. I've already been to the CDC's website and to my state's health department website and I understand about transmission, etc. I know that getting her vaccinated now won't help her if she already has it. I can't be sure that she hasn't come into contact with a rabid animal b/c I don't stay outside with her when she's in our fenced backyard. After I speak with the vet tomorrow I will better know the protocol to follow. I certainly don't want my dog put down if she's healthy but I have to be sure my family is safe. Most people think I'm overreacting, but a teenager recently died not too far away from a rabid bat bite so you just never know.

Prin - When I looked at the vaccines at the manufacturer's website it seemed there was a difference between the 1 and 3 year versions. Am I wrong? I know there was a difference in price when she got it.

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Sorry, I'm wrong, there is a 1 year one. Are you sure he only gave you the one year though? Do you have the stickers on your receipt from last year?

Either way though, titer tests will definitely tell you if your dog is immune still or not.

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I can't find the receipt but I'm going to call and see if I can get the info.

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There's Imrab 3 (used most often) and Imrab 1. I'd just be surprised if it was Imrab 1 because they can charge more of the 3 and use it on more animals (supposedly).

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She had Rabdomun brand. There's Rabdomun 1 and just Rabdomun. The first is the 1 year vaccine. You can read about it on the website I listed earlier.

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Cakes,

You should be able to get the information you need from your vet and then you can make an informed decision as to how to proceed. My guess is that your dog is still covered by the rabies vaccine, either because your vet uses the 3-year vaccine (most do) or because the 1-year vaccine is probably still effective even though it's past-due.

Typically, vaccines either directly provide antibodies to a disease (live vaccines) or challenge the immune system to produce those antibodies (dead cell vaccines). Everyone - animal or human - responds differently to vaccines. It's common to make lots of antibodies that linger in our systems for a long time. That's partially why many people believe that animals don't need rabies vaccines as frequently as once a year. Your vet can discuss whether the vaccine is still effective and test your dog's titers (antibody levels) to rabies. If the levels are high enough, your dog likely has protection from rabies and thus you should be fine, too.

I'm familiar with the bat bite case and, while it is sobering, remember that it was a rare case. If you are really worried, I suggest you contact your vet today, if only to put your mind at ease.

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I don't mean to scare you, and that wasn't my intention. Well, maybe a little. Just want you to know that if you're really concerned, that you need to insist on getting the treatment for it, before it's too late. Your family is probably safe, but you are the one who got bitten. Lots of places will say that they will watch the animal for 10 days and if they don't "turn" rabid, then you're fine, but I'd err on the side of caution and get the vaccines for yourself anyhow, if you're worried. The other thing that you could do is get the vaccines for yourself and your family even if it turns out that you're fine. Unfortunately, most health organizations don't do rabies vaccines unless you work/volunteer at something they consider high-risk (animal shelters are most common), but I'm not sure that they can refuse if you insist. The vaccine is a course of 3 injections that go under the skin. They're really not horrible. The worst part about it is that company that makes the vaccine insists on putting this fantastic purple dye in it, and most people have a reaction to that (I did!). The nurse that gave it to me said that she thought most people wouldn't react at all to vaccines if they didn't have dyes in them. It did look kinda cool as a purple dot under my skin for awhile.

Anyways... the point is that if you get vaccinated before you get exposed, and then get exposed to the virus, it is a series of 3 shots to prevent it from making you die. If you don't get vaccinated, and get exposed, it's a series of 5-6 shots (depending on whether they combine the immunoglobulin with the vaccine). And from what I was told, the shots after exposure go into your bum, but I might be spreading a myth on that.

I'm sorry for scaring you, but if you're worried that you might have gotten rabies from your dog, or anything else, it's best to just get the treatment and know you'll be ok then to wait and see if the animal "turns" or until you get sick.

Your dog is probably fine, but in the future, please try to make sure you get your dog to the vet for their annual vaccines on time. There are lots of things they are vaccinated for other than rabies, including parvo and distemper. I'm not sure if those ones "last" longer than a year, but I wouldn't want to see your dog (or any other dog including mine) get any of those things.

Good luck and I hope everything is ok. Please keep us informed.
Try not to worry too much, as DRN said, cases of rabies are quite low.

Melissa

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She had Rabdomun brand. There's Rabdomun 1 and just Rabdomun. The first is the 1 year vaccine. You can read about it on the website I listed earlier
Yeah, just ignore me today... I'm so sorry. My head isn't screwed on tight enough, it seems.

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Cakes,

I'm thinking about you today. I hope everything is okay.

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