Rabies vaccine called post exposure prophylaxis (PEP) is administered by the doctors if they suspect rabies on account of an animal bite. It is quite known that the vaccine is largely successful if it is administered right after the bite. That is, the first aid is to wash it with water and a chemical free soap. This largely reduces the risk of any infection that could possibly spread. Your doctor is also most likely to make you go through a number of tests using your saliva, blood, skin, hair and also spinal fluid to check for the antibodies or the rabies virus. It is important to note that the mortality rate of untreated rabies is considered to be very high (at a scary 99.99%). So the procedure is to give one of the fast-acting doses called rabies immune globulin, which helps you from further infection from the virus. After that, you are most likely to get nearly four rabies vaccine shots over a span of 14 days (from the date of the first shot).

How can one tell if the animal has rabies?
The truth is that it is very difficult to find out. If you are able to recollect if the animal that bit you had foam in the mouth or behaved aggressively, then the doctors would be able to come to some kind of a logical conclusion in treating you. However, mostly wild animals that have rabies, unfortunately act shy. It is worthy to note that this is not the usual behavior of a wild animal, they are not shy. Therefore, it is quite difficult to tell if a animal has rabies or not. First, there is the trauma of the bite, then the ability to recollect. Even if you recollect, you still do not want to take the risk of not taking the vaccination, hence you go for it anyway. The best solution for this would be to steer clear if you find wild animals behaving shy in the woods.

Besides the above-mentioned points, here are few rules while dealing with stray animals or wild animals:

• Never ever pet a stray dog or cat. Many people want to rescue animals, which is great but they are certainly not equipped with the right tools that will not only protect them but also the animal from any physical injury.
• If you witness an animal behaving strangely, aggressively or is trying to bite people for no valid reason or is foaming up in the mouth region, you should inform the local animal control immediately.
• Never ever touch an animal that looks dead.
• If you are a parent, ensure your child is always watched, especially in the woods or in areas that house a lot of stray dogs or cats. General statistics shows that children are more exposed to rabies than adults.
• Ensure to immunise your pets by giving their shots at the right time. Do not delay even by a day.

Most importantly, do not create nesting and food sources for wild animals. Do not invite them closer to your home and change their habitat and way of life.