It is World Rabies Day and we are working to make rabies a thing of the past AMA

Not sure, but didn't Michael Scott's Dunder Mifflin Scranton Meredith Palmer Memorial Celebrity Rabies Awareness Pro-Am Fun Run Race for the Cure pretty much eradicate the disease?

I think he it too! Amazing The Office reference Super-Zero - top marks!!!

Are most rabies infections in people really from bats? Dos a raccoon walking around during the day " have rabies for sure"? Does my mom know what she's talking about?

Hello heebit_the_jeeb ! Worldwide, 99% of human rabies cases are transmitted by dog bites BUT every warm blooded mammal can get rabies. Because in the USA and Canada canine rabies has been eliminated through successful vaccinations strategies now the virus is still found in wildlife. Now the primary carriers in North America are skunks, bats, foxes, coyotes and not forgetting Racoons. Your mum was RIGHT and she cares, so listen to her. FYI If you get bitten by any wild animal, please wash your wounds thoroughly for 15 minutes with soap and get medical advice from a doctor or health department immediately.

every warm blooded mammal

There are cold-blooded ones?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platypus

Is it possible for us to rid the world of rabies completely?

If so, what sort of timeline do you have for a goal like this?

Hello @Zok - Thank you for your question! Eliminating Rabies is totally possible! On the WHO website (again not the band) It says "Global Freedom from the threat of dog-mediated rabies is feasible within our lifetime". What we are saying is that is Rabies is 100% preventable. The aim of Mission Rabies is to eliminate rabies from the world by 2030. It's a date! http://wvs.org.uk/what-we-do/latest-news/dagmars-malawi-blog/

What about wild dogs, wolves, rabbits, beavers, raccoons, skunks, rodents, cats, goats, bats, various species of birds, and on and on? How do you prevent rabies in all other species?

Dogs are just a tiny fraction of possible rabies carriers.

Hi user64x excellent point! This is the case for USA/Canada but we work in areas of Asia and Africa where still more than 61000 people die every year of rabies from dog bites.

dog-mediated rabies

What other vectors exist, and is rabies from those other vectors less fatal to humans?

Hi @intentsman! Every warm blooded mammal can get infected by rabies and will die without post exposure treatment. If you get dribbled on by a rabid cow it will be as serious as from a dog bite.

How do you aim to deal with people who deny that vaccines work?

Hi @doesntthinkmuch great question! It can be tough to engage sometime when we get these sort of questions but thankfully we have TONS of data to back up that rabies vaccinations of dogs work. Here is some great information from the WHO (World Health Organisation not the band) that really explains well the need for vaccines! Thank you!

http://www.who.int/features/2015/rabies-malawi/en/

How is it possible to be totally rid of rabies? You are looking at vaccinating millions of wild animals from wolves, raccoons, skunks, rodents, felines, bats, goats, moose, rabbits, beavers, monkeys, etc. etc.

You pretty much have to vaccinate/medicate half of all animals out there!

Hi User64x - thank you for the question! 99% of all rabies cases are transmitted from dogs - this is why widespread mass canine rabies vaccinations which cover 70% of the dog population is the only way to eliminate rabies. This way we prevent rabies and death in humans (which is what we want to make a thing of the past).

What should I do if I can't remember if I got a rabies shot 6 years ago or not?

Hi Dr Dagmar here! Thank you for your amazing questions! @ravencrowed even if you would have had a jab 6 years ago you would have needed a booster since then - but please check wit your GP first - if you were a dog or a cat I could tell you but I am a vet! :)

What's the deal with hydrophobia? What's the reason it manifests in rabies?

Hi @thisisrogue2! Nice question, keep 'em coming! Thanks for bringing that up - for those who don't know: the rabies virus is spread via the saliva, not blood. Infected animals and people cannot swallow anymore which is why they drool. In India we did an initial test to see if a cow had rabies by putting a pale of water in front of it and the cow tried to drink but couldn't swallow. In infected humans lots of cases of hydrophobia are reported; the studies show the patients have involuntary contractions of neck muscles when they drinks water, but at later stages of disease, the patient will even start to contract his muscles even at the thought of water. This is an ancient and scary disease which has simply evolved to do that.

There seems to be a lot of misinformation about rabies, being often referenced and rarely understood. Does this pose any additional challenge to you in what you are attempting to achieve?

Hi @wfza1 ! Another top question! You are right, there is a lot of misinformation about rabies - such as dogs acting like something from a horror movie - infected dogs are very sick animals. To the untrained eye they are behaving in a strange way, getting paralysed, not being able to swallow... During our projects we make sure that education is just as important as our mass vaccination and sterilisation efforts. Check out the page of our sister charity Mission Rabies who are currently vaccinating tens of thousands of dogs in Goa http://www.missionrabies.com/education/

I contracted rabies in 1999, got the serum and the vaccines. My medical history has gone downhill from there.

Do you know of any long term side effects from getting and being treated for rabies?

Hi Grggr - hope you well! I assume you got bitten by a dog in 1999 and received a post exposure prophylaxis vaccination and immunoglobulins afterwards. Unfortunately I am not a GP and can't comment on potential long term effects - though in my experience after a rabies jab some people experience side effects like headaches, fevers, tingling etc.. But if you are still experiencing effects please visit your GP.