Potential Rabies Problem need help!!!

Whisperwindkat · #1 02/06/11, 09:19 AM

Crazy thing happened. A beaver probably from one of my neighbor's lakes made its way into my barn last night. My barn is a good way away from the lakes and is enclosed. There is a gap along the bottom of one stall and under the front gate and I am assuming either spot is where it came it. It made it's way into the stall with my stallion and ensconced itself in the corner where I found it this morning at feeding time. It did bite my horse and it showed no signs of trying to leave the barn despite the dancing horse hooves all around it. In fact this beaver was growling at the horse. So we killed the beaver making sure to leave head intact. I now have it in a double trash bag in the cooler and iced down. I have called the department of wildlife (no answer), critter man (no idea what to do with it), sheriff's department (no idea what to do with it), vet (no answer, no return call), humane society in next county (no answer), department of natural resources (no answer). So does anyone in the state of Alabama know where I can either call or take this animal so that it can be tested for rabies. My goats were also in the barn and I checked them all over really well, no one but the horse seems to have gotten bit. No agency seems to be able to help or know anything! Anyway, please help if you can. Thanks, Kat

fishhead · #2 02/06/11, 09:25 AM

I'm not sure but I think you can freeze the head until Monday. Try your Dept of Health.

It's probably just a 2 yr old that got kicked out of the lodge.

olivehill · #3 02/06/11, 09:29 AM

Let me ask you this, is your horse vaccinated? If so, will knowing the outcome of the test change the way you would handle this situation?

We had an incident a couple years back where we suspected rabies in an animal, did the same as you, preserving the head. I called all around the state trying to figure out how to have it tested. In the end it was a huge hassle and I can't remember now what the final verdict was on HOW to get it tested but I do remember basically the state didn't give a tiny rat's hiney whether the animal was tested or not and the costs of shipping the head to the lab was basically mine. No one here got bit, so I ended up just disposing of the animal as knowing whether or not it had rabies wasn't really of concern to me.

Your state may be different, but here as I found out that summer, they don't really care as long as there's not risk of humans contracting it.

BrightBay · #4 02/06/11, 09:30 AM

yeah, I had to freeze the head (or whole animal) until Monday and then it took quite a while after that to get the results.

sorry it happened.

GoldenMom · #5 02/06/11, 09:30 AM

Do NOT freeze it. Keeping it cool as you are doing is exactly right.

I would try to contact the teaching hospital at Auburn. Surely they have an after hours emergency department.

Whisperwindkat · #6 02/06/11, 09:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olivehill

Let me ask you this, is your horse vaccinated? If so, will knowing the outcome of the test change the way you would handle this situation?

We had an incident a couple years back where we suspected rabies in an animal, did the same as you, preserving the head. I called all around the state trying to figure out how to have it tested. In the end it was a huge hassle and I can't remember now what the final verdict was on HOW to get it tested but I do remember basically the state didn't give a tiny rat's hiney whether the animal was tested or not and the costs of shipping the head to the lab was basically mine. No one here got bit, so I ended up just disposing of the animal as knowing whether or not it had rabies wasn't really of concern to me.

Your state may be different, but here as I found out that summer, they don't really care as long as there's not risk of humans contracting it.

No, the horse is not vaccinated anymore. I stopped vaccinating several years ago when I got tired of vets thinking I was nuts for vaccinating horses. I began to think maybe they were right.

I has been about 6 years since his last rabies vaccine, so it is important that I know about the beaver. The outcome will determine how I deal with the horse. Thanks, Kat

anniew · #7 02/06/11, 10:17 AM

I agree. Don't freeze the head...just keep it cool. I had an incident and one reason they couldn't test was because the head was frozen...

MO_cows · #8 02/06/11, 11:56 AM

Here in MO there is a state lab. We had to test a dog once, our vet sent the brain to the lab, the fees were charged back to us via the vet. Keep it chilled until Monday when everything is open again.

Sorry this happened! If you must keep your horses stalled, I would sure start back up with the rabies vaccinations.

MARYDVM · #9 02/06/11, 12:02 PM

Dealing with rabies cases in NY, we often talked with the county health dept. They were in charge of free rabies vacc clinics too.

praieri winds · #10 02/06/11, 12:14 PM

is there a department of infectious diseases where you are they might help

Bat Farm · #11 02/06/11, 02:23 PM

If you have to pay for the testing, it may just be cheaper to have the horse's titer checked to see if it is still good from the last vaccine (they can last way longer than one year, the annual thing is for CYA) you could then add another shot just to be safe. I get my shots since I handle rabies vector wildlife and I average 5 years before I need another. A horse would have a slower metabolism and so may still be good. Ask your vet how much a titer test would be (mine is about $90).

If you do have the head tested, don't freeze it. That will cause the brain cells to burst and will be useless for testing.

secretcreek · #12 02/06/11, 02:27 PM

That's true about rabies vacs...the vet I worked for said no one knew how long the vaccine coverage lasted.

Nina · #13 02/06/11, 02:41 PM

I agree with secretcreek, I had a holistic vet tell me the rabies shot might only have to be given once, that they didn't know if it would ever need to be given again. (Except that they wanted your money over and over again.)

Ravenlost · #14 02/06/11, 02:50 PM

Good luck finding someone in AL who cares! Goldenmom had a good suggestion in contacting Auburn University.

I grew up in AL. Many years ago my Daddy was at his sawmill when a rabid fox approached him in broad daylight. The fox was foaming at the mouth and acting very strange so Daddy shot it, then called the Health Dept. who asked him what he wanted them to do about it. Told him to just bury it as they didn't care!

mountainlaurel · #15 02/06/11, 03:29 PM

About 2 weeks ago, my dd shot a skunk that was trying to bite it's way into her dogs outside kennel. She shot it out her window and called her vet. He told her who to contact. They came out, got the skunk, tested it, it was positive and they told her that since skunks live in colonies, the rest of the colony is probably infected too.
This past Friday, she shot another one in her yard. She called the SPCA again and I haven't heard yet if it was positive.

Rusty'sDog · #16 02/06/11, 03:55 PM

Is it Murphy's Law, or do these thing always happen on weekends when all govt is shut down?

On Monday, contact your county Extension Agent. He will know who to contact/what to do. Plus, he is connected with the local Land Grant University, and has connections to all of their labs.

DJ in WA · #17 02/06/11, 03:58 PM

I would assume the beaver has rabies, and just get a booster shot for your horse as soon as you can. You have time.

With rabies, the virus is injected via the bite into tissue and travels up nerves, eventually reaching the brain. This is a slow process, taking weeks to months, depending on where the bite occurred. If bitten in the face, obviously the brain isn't far away. If bitten on a leg, could take months to reach the brain.

If immunity from vaccination occurs before the virus reaches the brain, you're okay. That is why humans can start getting their first ever vaccinations after being bitten and still develop immunity. Your horse is ahead of the game having received some vaccine already. As others stated, your horse probably still has immunity, but another booster shot or two would be in order to make sure. And keep an eye on him for a few months. I wouldn't be sticking my hand in his mouth, as virus is transmitted by saliva.

Where on his body was the bite?

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/in.../bc/102300.htm

Quote:

The incubation period is both prolonged and variable; typically, the virus remains at the inoculation site for a considerable time. The unusual length of the incubation period helps to explain how postexposure treatment, including in humans the practice of locally infiltrating hyperimmune serum, is effective. Most cases in dogs develop within 21-80 days after exposure, but the incubation period may be shorter or considerably longer. One reliably recorded case of rabies in a human had an incubation period >6 yr.

.......Where terrestrial wildlife or bat rabies is known to occur, any animal bitten or otherwise exposed by a wild, carnivorous mammal (or a bat) not available for testing should be regarded as having been exposed to rabies. The NASPHV recommends that any unvaccinated dog, cat, or ferret exposed to rabies be euthanized immediately. If the owner is unwilling to do this, the animal should be placed in strict isolation (ie, no human or animal contact) for 6 mo and vaccinated against rabies 1 mo before release. If an exposed animal is currently vaccinated, it should be revaccinated immediately and closely observed for 45 days.

suitcase_sally · #18 02/06/11, 03:58 PM

If the test comes back negative, roast beaver is supposed to be good.

tinknal · #19 02/06/11, 05:15 PM

I know you should never say never, but it is highly unlikely that a beaver would have rabies. as a previous posted said, it is probably a 2 year old that got kicked out of the lodge to make room for new babies. Happens every year around this time.

Whisperwindkat · #20 02/06/11, 05:20 PM

Well, both my vet and another vet finally called me back. Both have the same opinion, re-vaccinate the horse tomorrow and don't bother getting the beaver tested. I am getting the horse re-vaccinated tomorrow, but don't know how I feel about not getting the beaver tested. Of course, the testing cost will be on me and they both said that the state lab might not want to fool with it since there has never been a reported case of rabies in beavers in the state that they know of. So, what do you think? Take my chances, re-vaccinate the horse and watch him for the next few months, and get rid of the beaver? Or, play it on the very safe and cautious side re-vaccinate the horse and try to convince the lab to test? Decisions decisions.... Then again I would really hate to know that I killed the beaver for no apparent reason when I could have easily run him out of the barn and through the pasture with a pitchfork. Ugghhh. Thanks everybody, Kat