Does Michigan have rabies?
State law requires dogs and ferrets to be vaccinated against rabies by a licensed veterinarian. So far in 2021, there have been seven confirmed rabid animals in Michigan: this dog and six bats. The bats were detected in Clinton, Ingham, Kent, Midland, Oakland, and Ottawa counties.
Do bats in Michigan carry rabies?
Four bats have tested positive for rabies in Clinton, Ingham, Kent, and Midland counties in 2021. Generally, bats and skunks are a primary source of the disease. In 2020, there were 56 cases of rabies in Michigan animals including 52 rabid bats and four rabid skunks.
How common is rabies in humans?
The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 60,000 human deaths from rabies each year in Asia and Africa. According to WHO: domestic dogs transmit the rabies virus in more than 99% of human cases. 40% of cases occur in children under 15 years of age.
Do raccoons in Michigan carry rabies?
Raccoon rabies has never been detected in Michigan. If you see a raccoon that appears to be sick or acting strangely, it is likely suffering from distemper. Please call the Humane Society of Huron Valley Wildlife Removal at (734) 661-3512.
Is rabies rare in Michigan?
Rabies has been confirmed in 46 mammals across Michigan this year, including four bats and eight skunks in Oakland County. Although human contraction is rare, the risk is real and the impact horrific. Here’s a look at Michigan’s last rabies death in 2009, reprinted from the Centers for Disease Control.
What animals carry rabies in Michigan?
In Michigan, the most common wildlife species to contract rabies are bats, accounting for 78% to 100% of the rabies cases in the state during the period 2007 to 2017.
What percent of bats have rabies in Michigan?
What if you touch a bat?
Anyone who touched or had contact with the bat or its saliva could be at risk of getting rabies, which is almost always fatal once symptoms begin. If you think you or your children or pets may have touched or picked up a bat, call Public Health immediately at 206-296-4774.
What are the odds of getting rabies?
From the estimates provided by the expert panel, it is possible to characterize the risk of zoonotic rabies transmission to humans following some non-bite exposures, as often being “negligible.” For example, using the risk estimate of 1 in 1,000,000 following a lick from a cat or dog, and assuming there are 30,000 …
How do you know if a person has rabies?
The first symptoms of rabies can appear from a few days to more than a year after the bite happens. At first, there’s a tingling, prickling, or itching feeling around the bite area. A person also might have flu-like symptoms such as a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and tiredness.
What percentage of raccoons carry rabies?
Wild Animals Bats were the most frequently reported rabid wildlife species (33% of all animal cases during 2018), followed by raccoons (30.3%), skunks (20.3%), and foxes (7.2%).
Can you get rabies if you don’t touch a bat?
People can t get rabies just from seeing a bat in an attic, in a cave, at summer camp, or from a distance while it is flying. In addition, people can t get rabies from having contact with bat guano (feces), blood, or urine, or from touching a bat on its fur.
Can rabies be transmitted without a bite?
In rare cases, rabies has been transmitted without an actual bite. This type of infection is believed to be caused by infected saliva that has gotten into the air, usually in bat caves.
When was the last rabies case in the US?
The last case of human rabies was in 1976, the statement said. Katherine Feldman, the state public health veterinarian, said the infection occurred in the past few weeks, and public health officials are trying to determine “who may have kissed the patient or anybody who had saliva contact” with the individual.
Why is rabies incurable?
Fact #2: Rabies is incurable. It is imperative that a person who has suffered a bite from an animal visit a doctor immediately to get the vaccine. This is because rabies is incurable once a person starts showing symptoms of the disease, which may be any time from one to three months.
Is rabies treatable?
Rabies is treatable if it is caught in time. However, if treatment has not been started before a person develops symptoms, there is no cure, and the disease is almost always fatal. (To learn more about this disease, including details on the animals most likely to transmit it, click Rabies.)