[Gpdd] Health: Rabies

[DFHAKES at aol.com]

I am posting this with permission of Dr. Eidson, from NY state's 
Dept of Health:
______________________
The New York State Department of Health's Wadsworth Center 
Rabies Laboratory has identified a pet guinea pig infected with 
raccoon variant rabies.  This is the first rabid guinea pig and the 
first rabid pet rodent identified in the state.  The animal was six 
years old, and had been a pet with one family its entire life. On 
September 27th, the owner brought the animal outdoors for 
fresh air, and allowed it to roam free. The owner heard the 
guinea pig squeal, and came around a dog house to see a 
raccoon running off to climb a tree.  The guinea pig was found 
burrowed under the edge of the dog house. For the next few 
days, the animal favored a hind limb, though the owner did not 
report a visible wound.  A raccoon was found dead, hit by a car, 
the next day on the road in front of the owner's home (not tested 
for rabies).

On October 23rd, the owner was bitten by the guinea pig on bare 
skin 'near the clavicle', and promptly washed the area twice with 
soap and water. She assumed she was bitten because she was 
squeezing the animal too hard. After thinking about the bite 
incident for several days, the owner contacted local health 
authorities and was advised to submit the animal
for rabies testing. The animal was euthanized on 10/30. The 
veterinary
technician who euthanized the animal noted that the guinea pig 
had a 
poor
hair coat and was a bit thin, with slightly crusty eyes from an 
ocular discharge, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary for an 
older guinea pig.
In hindsight the owner reported the guinea pig had become 
coprophagic in
the week prior to euthanasia.  The animal was not seen by a 
veterinarian. The brain tested strongly positive for rabies 
infection by immunofluorescence microscopy. This finding was 
confirmed by virus isolation in cell culture. Testing to evaluate 
virus tropism is underway.

Given the history, if the owner had not happened to witness the 
raccoon
attack, the guinea pig may never have been tested and the 
patient may
never have received rabies PEP.  In the worst case, the owner 
may never
have thought to contact local health at all.  In addition, guinea 
pigs
frequently give small bites to their owners, and guinea pigs 
usually die at home with nonspecific signs such as this one, 
without the owners contacting local health departments for 
rabies testing. If the owner had subsequently developed rabies, 
the guinea pig bite and the raccoon incident may never have 
been included in her patient history.

This case has many similarities to some of the incidents of rabid 
pet rabbits we've had in NYS.  In several of those cases, the 
rabbits were caged outside, a raccoon was observed nearby or 
on the cage, with a small wound noted on the rabbit in one case, 
but the rabbits usually were not confined for 6 months and 
human exposures occurred when they developed rabies.  We'll 
be working with the Rabies Laboratory to write up in more
detail these cases.  This guinea pig and the pet rabbit cases 
serve as a warning about the risks of letting unvaccinated pets, 
especially small rodents/rabbits that people don't think about in 
regard to rabies, outside without protection of double cages, and 
the importance of reporting all potential contacts of those 
animals with wildlife to health departments
for appropriate followup.

Millicent Eidson, MA, DVM, DACVPM (Epidemiology)
State Public Health Veterinarian and Director,
Zoonoses Program
New York State Department of Health"



Dana F. Hakes
Chapter Manager
Tampa Bay House Rabbit Society
www.tampabayhrs.org
http://www.petfinder.org/shelters/FL92.html

"...Saving just one pet won't change the world
..but, surely, the world will change for that one pet..."