The Star E-dition

Vet staff exposed to rabies after rescuing dog

ZELDA VENTER zelda.venter@inl.co.za

OCTOBER is World Rabies Prevention Month, and a stray dog called Lady has exposed five of the six members of the non-profit veterinary service Cluny, in Clarens in the Free State, to this dreaded virus.

Last week there were reported cases in the Western Cape, and now there is another confirmed in Clarens, bringing the number of confirmed cases of rabies this year to 10.

At the end of last month, pictures of Lady were doing the rounds on Whatsapp groups. She had been spotted thin and thirsty. Then she seemed to disappear before showing up somewhere else.

Veterinarian Dr Chantel van den Berg, who earlier dived into a dumpster to rescue another stray, went out to the spot where she had been seen last.

“She sat there as if waiting for someone,” she said.

“I could tell she was feeding pups, but there was not a lot of milk left, so I initially thought that someone may have dumped her. I tried to encourage Lady to show us where the puppies were by playing puppy sounds but she did not move, she remained rooted to that spot.

“I couldn’t just leave her there, so I popped her in the back of the car. It was then that I was bitten. I didn’t think much of it at the time, and we headed for our clinic in Fouriesburg.”

The team examined Lady and although skinny, she seemed in good health. At that point there was no concern relating to rabies.

She was fed, dewormed, treated for ticks and fleas and put into a cage for the evening. A few days later things started to change when she refused to eat and stopped drinking water.

Lady had started showing signs of paralytic rabies – this is characterised by weakness, laboured breathing, and loss of co-ordination. Van den Berg said it presents itself very differently from the rabies that we all think of, which is the crazy, aggressive dog foaming at the mouth.

The next morning it was discovered that Lady had died sometime during the night. Van den Berg was immediately given rabies vaccine.

“My head was spinning as I knew that there were a few Clarens residents who had been in contact with Lady. I called them all. At that point in time, we didn’t know that rabies was the cause of death, but in a case like this, it is better to be safe than sorry.”

They were all advised to seek medical treatment immediately, for themselves as well as their animals that had been in proximity to Lady.

Van den Berg said rabies was a fast-moving virus, and it was too late for treatment once symptoms presented themselves.

“You must be proactive if you even think that you may have had contact with an animal that may be infected,” she warned.

After examining a sample, the state veterinarian confirmed that rabies was evident.

“As a team, we all know the risks of what we do, but this entire situation has hit very close to home and the vaccinations for the team cost a small fortune, but it is better to be safe than sorry.”

Van den Berg said that getting one’s animals vaccinated was the only way to keep them safe as rabies was 100% fatal for unvaccinated animals.

“There is a saying that we use as a team – prevention is better because there is no cure,” Van den Berg said.

Metro

en-za

2021-09-11T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-09-11T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://thestar.pressreader.com/article/281608128554492

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