South African rabies outbreak: Everything you need to know
Danny Painter spoke to AfriVet Rabies spokesperson Dr Didi Claasen about the current rabies outbreak in South Africa and the importance of having your pets vaccinated!
There have been at least 20 cases of human rabies cases since 2021.
The cases were reportedly from the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Limpopo provinces.
When it comes to rabies in animals, the number is higher.
More than 430 cases of rabies have been confirmed in dogs in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality of South Africa since July, reports the euro surveillance organisation.
Community Veterinary Clinics of SA Veterinary Association states the following facts about rabies:
- Rabies is a zoonotic disease ( which means that people can become infected by an infected animal).
- The virus is shed in salive and spread mainly by the bite of an infected animal.
- Rabies affects the brain and is fatal once a person or animal shows clinical signs.
Symptoms of rabies
Humans who have been infected with rabies may show the following symptoms similar to the flu - weakness or discomfort, fever, headache, discomfort, prickling, or an itching sensation at the site of the bite.
In animals, you might notice changes in behaviour and your pets becoming wild and aggressive. Then in other animals, paralysis eventually occurs, resulting in death.
Vaccination
In order to save your pets from dying from rabies, it is important to have them vaccinated.
Listen to Danny Painter's interview with AfriVet Rabies spokesperson Dr Didi Claasen about the current rabies outbreak in South Africa and the importance of having your pets vaccinated below.
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