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Stray dog bite: Rabies

Stray dogs are very common in some parts of the world especially in the developing countries. Not all the stray dogs are dangerous, however, it is always be safe to be away from them.

One of the reasons is that, you never know whether the dog is sick or not. Dog bite is hurt, of course, but it can be life danger if the dog that bite you is infected with rabies virus. Rabid dogs carry the virus inside their saliva and can transmit to you when you got bitten or even scratch ( the dogs lick their foot very frequent and the virus can stay on their foot and transmit via scratching).



Fortunately, post exposure prophylaxis vaccination is very effective to prevent rabies and it is widely available. Here are some steps to do after dog bite:

  1. Clean the wound immediately with clean water and soap
  2. Do not try to apply any herbal medicine (a lot of belief do that) as it can cause the wound to be infected
  3. Go to the nearest health facilities and discuss about possibility of vaccination against rabies and tetanus vaccine as well
On the other hand, if you got bitten by a known dog (the wound is not on your head or genital area), you may want to observe the dog for 10 days to avoid unnecessary injections. Within 10 days, if the dog doesn't show any signs of sickness, you may feel safe to be not vaccinated.

Read more @ WHO: about Rabies

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