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["Lynda" <lurine AT com-pair.net>]

No random testing.

There is a vaccine for humans for rabies.  That isn't what you get when you 
get the series of shots.

I'm not sure how you mean "carriers."  If you mean like Typhoid Mary, no 
they aren't carriers.  If you mean, if they are infected, can they infect 
you before classic symptoms show, the answer is yes.  Humans, on the other 
hand, can be symptom free for an extended period of time.  The size of the 
animal and the relationship between the infected site and the brain 
determine how long between infection and symptoms.  For example, a human 
bitten on their toe can be symptom free for months.  Bats, on the other 
hand, display symptoms relatively quickly as their heart rate is high and 
there isn't much space between any site on their little bodies and their 
brain.

At this point and time, no one is doing titers to find out how long the 
various rabies vaccines last.  Contrary to popular belief, the vaccines for 
dogs confer immunity for at least 5 years.  However, like any other big 
business, Big Pharma and the vet population in general like the easy money.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "roxann" <roxann AT ancientearthwisdom.com>


> Lynda,
>
> I wonder if these statistics are run based only on the amount of foxes 
> turned in for testing, or is it a random selection of the wild population? 
> Fox, coon, skunk, bat are all carriers and can have the virus without 
> displaying symptoms. Does the animal need to be 'rabid' as in, mad, to be 
> contagious? I thought not. So if a fox had bitten me, whether it appeared 
> to be diseased or not, I'd be inclined to get the shots anyway. AFter 
> that, will the shots confer a lifetime immunity to subsequent exposures? 
> Out here, our most probably method of contracting rabies would be from 
> domestic animals who have been bitten by the wild animals. If a domestic 
> animal does not show symptoms within 10 days or so, after I was bitten, 
> perhaps I would not go through the shots because the likelihood of getting 
> rabies from that bite would be greatly diminished. At least there you have 
> a canary to watch and base a decision on. Still, it seems that a debt of 
> $2000 would be a lesser burden on my system
> than the stress of wondering how it will all turn out with the gamble of 
> not getting the shots.