The whole rabies story

I got a lot of questions after I posted a blog item on getting rabies shots. I decided to write this column that appeared in The Star this week. For what it's worth, here it is:

These rabies cases cropping up in Cleveland County are awakening some ghosts for me.

A number of years ago on a peaceful Saturday morning, while I still resided in Gaston County, I took my dogs outside in the serenity of my privacy-fenced yard so they could do what dogs generally do when they go outside.

Instead of taking care of business, one of my dogs makes a beeline for the stairs to my porch, where three feral cats had sought refuge from the rain. Instead of finding refuge, one of the cats gets attacked by my overprotective dog, Rocky, now a proud new Cleveland County resident himself.

I don’t really like cats, but I wasn’t about to watch Rocky attempt to eat one for breakfast. So I pry the cat from Rocky’s jaws. Newly rescued, the cat then shows his (or her) appreciation by attacking me. Then his two friends join the vicious attack. I end up with a mauled arm, but I manage to get the cats safely away.

Since we had a rabies problem in Gaston at that time, I sought medical treatment. Before I know it, the doctors are calling the police department, which is calling animal control, which is calling the health department.

And almost as fast, I’m taking antibiotics and animal control moves in to set up traps in my yard to catch one of the cats and check it for rabies. It’s the only way I’m going to avoid getting numerous doses of rabies shots. The traps come up empty and the health department orders (or strongly suggests) that I undergo that horrible series of rabies shots.Rabies is fatal. If you get it, you’re toast.

I reluctantly agree and the shots start within days. They don’t seem so bad at first, even though the first series is a real whopper.

They inject you with a lot of stuff. As I have to keep going back for more shots, the pain gets worse and it lasts long after the needle stings. I’ve heard the shots have gotten much better since.

The dogs, even Rocky, get off relatively easy. They just get a booster shot since they were current on their rabies vaccinations. Without those vaccinations, the dogs would have been euthanized or quarantined for six months at my expense. I don’t like the term “put to sleep” for “euthanized,” since I’m unaware of any dog put to sleep ever waking up again.

Meanwhile, one of the cats turns up dead a few houses down from mine. I think this is my salvation from more shots as animal control dutifully collects the cat and sends it off to Raleigh for a rabies test. But the results come back inconclusive and my shots continue.

My story is a good reminder that keeping your pets updated on their rabies shots can save their lives. As for their owners …