This is why World Rabies Day is so important

An outing to the beach turned into a R3 200 bill for Caxton’s Group Editor, Irma Green, during a recent holiday in Ballito.

Green said on September 8, and the second day of her leave, she went for a walk and sat on one of the benches overlooking the ocean, when a large Alsatian came running up to her. He was all over her and had a stick in his mouth which he put down at her feet.

He kept on playing with it, but she could feel his mouth touching her feet and was scared that he was going to bite her.

She looked around to see whether she could see the dog’s owner and saw a woman walking in her direction with another Alsatian on a lead. Green said she decided to pick up the stick and throw it, but as she reached to grab it, the dog bit her.

“In all honesty I didn’t think that he did it out of aggressiveness, but rather as a game. It was unfortunately extremely painful and immediately started to bleed.”

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By the time the owner (who happened to be the person with the other dog) reached her, her hand was bleeding and both fingers were already swollen.

“She was extremely apologetic and while I was walking back to our accommodation she promised to return as she just wanted to take her animals home.”

In the next half hour the swelling became worse and Green said she experienced a lot of pain. “I phoned Dr Attie van Wyk after I sent him some photos and he advised that I go for medical attention. As it was a Sunday I had to go to the emergency rooms at the local hospital.

“Not knowing that rabies is a serious problem in Natal, the process then escalated to one of filling in forms about the incident and waiting for the hospital to report it to the authorities.

“They then prescribed the course of treatment which included the usual tetanus shot, a second injection and an intravenous antibiotic drip.”

Two hours later she left the emergency rooms having had to pay R3 200 for the treatment. For the next two days she wasn’t allowed to get her hand wet and on the Wednesday the dressing was changed.

“I tried to locate the owner after that, but got nowhere. She contravened the rules of Ballito’s beaches which clearly state that dogs aren’t allowed to be walked without a lead.”

But, if the dog did have rabies it could have caused a major problem and Green said she had no option but to pay for the treatment.

This is why World Rabies Day is annually celebrated to raise awareness for the prevention of the disease.

Rabies vaccines are among the most important that exist for human and pets in order to win the battle against the disease.

The core focus is to eliminate human deaths while raising awareness about it.

What is rabies?

It is a virus that attacks the central nervous system and causes inflammation of the brain in humans and other animals.

This deadly disease is caused by lyssaviruses, including the rabies virus and Australian bat lyssavirus. It is spread when an infected animal scratches or bites another animal or human.

It can also be spread through the saliva of an infected animal.

Symptoms of rabies

• Insomnia
• Anxiety
• Confusion
• Paralysis
• Hyperactivity
• Hallucinations
• Salivating more than the norm
• Difficulty swallowing
• Being easily agitated

Over time the symptoms cause lung or heart failure. It can also cause you to go into a coma, eventually resulting in death. If you have been in contact with a rabid animal, seek medical attention immediately.

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