rabies shot

[Guest guest]

I am coming late to this discussion. I am a veterinarian, mother and livestock producer in an area where we have multiple cases of rabies confirmed every year in both ag and non ag species.

I believe any mammal that will be touched on a regular basis by a human should be vaccinated for rabies. What are the odds of any particular animal getting rabies? Astronomically low. What are the odds you will be exposed and not realize it? Still fairly small. What are the odds you die if you do get rabies? 100%.

Imagine the following scenarios:

-Dairy producer finds sick skunk in the holding pen of the milking parlor. Several cows have scratches on their noses. Skunk comes back positive for rabies. Scratces could have been from weeds in the pasture, or could have been from skunk- cows will gather around anything novel and lower their heads to sniff it. It is proven rabid cows can shed rabies virus in their milk. Now imagine you have been buying raw milk from this herd to give your baby girl.

Imagine you have been selling raw milk from a cow who is now standing in front of you unable to swallow, down in milk and the vet telling you if she doesn't respond to treatmetn for listeria her head needs to go to the state lab for rabies testing cause that skunk came back positive.

-4H lamb starts acting funny, becomes unable to walk and is euthanized. Comes back positive for rabies. Never known to have been bitten by any animal although parents of the kid do remember treating what they thought were shearing nicks on the lamb. Since the kids and parents in the club all share equipment and help each other out getting ready for shows everyone who could have had contact with the lamb- most of them kids under the age of 12- have to get rabies postexposure series.

-Beloved aging pony is being used once again for pony rides and petting at the spring carnival at the elementary school. You can buy pony treats 2 for a quarter to feed him, proceeds benefit the SBDC, we're hoping to buy all new music instruemnts this year, keep your hand flat, yes he DOES slobber a lot doesn't he, okay, next please, hey, stay in line and take turns... Old Joe is a little wobbly this year, we don't do much with him anymore, we didn't even realize he had that little sore place on his leg, must be from some old barb wire out there somewhere but it looks like it's healing up okay so we don't need the vet to take a look at it; guess we ought to retire old Joe and find another pony for next year though. Gets wobblier the next day, goes down the day after that, vet gets called out to pu thim down on the third day only he dies of a seizure before the vet gets there. Well, he was old and it was a hot day, we all feel terrible because we must have overstressed him.

Now how would you feel if it were YOUR kid getting slobbered on by an unvaccinated animal with an untreated wound who dies of an undiagnosed neurological problem 3 days later? How would you feel if it were your pony?

So again, what are the odds any given animal or person will be exposed? Really, excruciatingly, vanishingly small.

What are the odds I want to see a kid, mine or someone else's, at risk for rabies? Absolute zero.

So all my ewes are vaccinated for rabies, as are the dogs and cats (even the strictly indoor ones!) and the show and tell pet goats. I recommend any mammal that is going to be in close contact with people on a regular basis be vaccinated. Do reactions happen? Sure- had a lamb die two years ago, we were also giving other vaccines at the same time. That's one animal out of about five thousand doses I have given in the last decade. Even were the rate ten times higher I would still vaccinate, although I'd push the manufacturers hard to make it safer!

That's how I feel as a vet, producer and mother in a rabies endemic area. Others may feel justifiably different in a different area with different disease prevalence and risks.

Eden Myers

Mt Sterling KY

[Guest guest]

>>>>Anyone hear about AIDS?>>>

Sadly, yes. Another one of the things I have researched a lot about. Perhaps

this isnt the place to talk about the AIDS hoax and you may not be open to

hearing information that does not agree with the standard CDC line.

If youre still inclined to believe that virus causes disease, youre

certainly welcome to your beliefs. Many of us are catching on to the

possibility that it's the other way around. Dis-ease creates virii.

Florence Nightingale also said many many years ago that there were no

specific diseases in themselves but a dis-eased state was caused by an

imbalance in the body.

Pasteur and his fellows with their high powered media circus managed to all

but wipe that out as well as the work of a little known scientists known as

Antoice Bechamp.

Technology has come a long way but I see far too many people believeing in

" science " without ever questioning the same old tired theories, in an almost

religious like fanatacism.

.....sharon