Rabies Risk After Contact With a Dog That Died: What to Consider

Concern About Rabies After a Dog's Death

Dora wrote: "Could I have caught rabies from a dead dog? My beloved dog died yesterday. A week ago, she bit a puppy who doesn't have a rabies vaccine yet. The puppy was sleeping outside. My deceased dog was vaccinated before the pandemic. I know dogs are vaccinated every year, but my dog was running around a fenced garden.

On Saturday, symptoms included vomiting and diarrhea. She was unsteady and had difficulty going up and down stairs. She went outside two or three times and drank water for the last time. She wasn't aggressive. In the evening, she was breathing heavily.

On Friday or Saturday after 1pm, she approached us while we were eating and looked at us. Late in the afternoon, she came to me as she was coming down the stairs, and I stroked her head and forehead. She had vomit or something like that stuck to her hair. I didn't look to see if I had a cut or not, and I stroked her. Then, I quickly washed my hand with soap, and I have long nails that I didn't wash thoroughly. In the evening, I saw that between my thumb and finger, I had a microscopic crack in the skin, like blood. I ask because at night foxes and raccoons hang around our yard and steal food from my animals and eat waste vegetables and fruits. I'm worried. I'm afraid."

Low Likelihood of Rabies From a Vaccinated Dog

Because your dog had been vaccinated, even if the vaccine was outdated, the risk that she passed rabies to you is low, even if she had encountered the virus. Poland reports fewer than 300 rabies cases annually (1), and the majority occur in wild animals. In Europe, nearly all rabies cases are in travelers who get infected while visiting other areas. Rabies remains poorly controlled in parts of Asia and Africa, where most human deaths happen. (2)

Recognizing Rabies Symptoms in Dogs

The signs you describe do not match the usual picture of rabies in dogs. Rabies-infected dogs can become lethargic (weak and unsteady) and may vomit, but diarrhea is not typical. They also tend to avoid water because the virus paralyzes their throats, making swallowing impossible.

Around 20 percent of rabies cases take the paralytic or "dumb" form. It is possible that your dog had this form, or that she had rabies exposure along with another condition causing those symptoms. Dogs with paralytic rabies do not become vicious and bite other animals or people; instead, they drool excessively, grow weak, and lie around until they die.

Although the likelihood is low, there is a small possibility that your dog's saliva carried the virus to the scratch on your hand. I recommend contacting a medical professional in your area and getting vaccinated against rabies. This is not an emergency, but prevention is important because no treatment exists once infection occurs. Today's vaccines are not painful or stressful like older ones, and some locations offer intradermal vaccines that are less stressful. (3)

Sources

1. Krzowska-Firych J, Mazurek E, Hasiec B, Tomasiewicz K. The first report evaluating the post-exposure rabies prophylaxis in children exposed to animals in the Lublin Province (Eastern Poland) in 2010-2016 – a retrospective study. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 2018;14(11):2660-2665. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2018.1477910. Epub 2018 Jun 28. PMID: 29771638; PMCID: PMC6314426. i.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6314426/
2. Burgos-Cáceres S. Canine Rabies: A Looming Threat to Public Health. Animals (Basel). 2011 Sep 26;1(4):326-42. doi: 10.3390/ani1040326. PMID: 26486619; PMCID: PMC4513477. i.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4513477/
3. Natesan K, Isloor S, Vinayagamurthy B, Ramakrishnaiah S, Doddamane R, Fooks AR. Developments in Rabies Vaccines: The Path Traversed from Pasteur to the Modern Era of Immunization. Vaccines (Basel). 2023 Mar 29;11(4):756. doi: 10.3390/vaccines11040756. PMID: 37112668; PMCID: PMC10147034. i.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10147034/

This article is not meant to substitute for diagnosis, prognosis, treatment, prescription, or formal and individualized advice from your veterinarian. Animals exhibiting signs and symptoms of distress should be seen by a veterinarian immediately.

© 2024 Mark dos Anjos, DVM