A rabid stray dog attacked a group of girls playing in their garden in Kiepersol on Monday, March 31. Mieke Prinsloo (12) was bitten on the leg after which she fell and the dog tried to bite her face. The young girl tried to defend herself and it bit one of her arms.
Mieke’s sister Leane (9) started hitting the stray with a stick while their friend Anzel Louw ran for help. By the time the injured girl’s mother Lenelle Prinsloo arrived, the dog had run away into the surrounding banana plantations.
Madeleine and Marius van Staden of Paramedic Response & Consulting were immediately contacted for advice. Van Staden recommended that the child be taken to Sabie Hospital for rabies treatment.
At the hospital Dr J Morrow attended to Mieke’s injuries and proceeded to treat her with a series of injections to counter possible rabies infection.
Two days later Mieke’s wounds had become septic and she was admitted to hospital where she received a drip and antibiotics. On Friday she was back home but had to receive further antibiotic injections. Dr Robbie Nel administered them at six-hourly intervals.
Mieke recovered fully and is already back at school. The stray was found and shot and the carcass sent for tests, which tested positive for rabies.
