rabies and cleaning game? is it a risk?

RescueRiley

RescueRiley

Joined
Mar 22, 2006
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I usually wear latex surgical gloves when cleaning game but jmy hands are always banged up and have little nicks...Was wondering what the risk factors if any are..Thanks
 
There are always some risk factors involved; what kind of game are you cleaning that you are worried about. Skunks and Racoons would be the most likely to have rabies at the moment. Wearing gloves is deinitely a good precaution; are the nicks that you have through the gloves or covered up? The rabies virus especially likes the hide out in the salivary glands which is why it is transmitted from bites. It also hides in the nervous tissue, mainly in the brain. If you are worried about it those are the two areas I would try to avoid. And of course wash your hands very well as soon as possible after skinning and cleaning the game; if you aren't around somewhere to wash them then use the alcohol solutions to clean them.
 
I think what I would do is not go on conjecture but to contact a friendly, neighborhood Vet and find out what some of the main symptoms are besides erratic behavior and foaming at the mouth - to see if there are any other telltale signs of infection and also ask the Vet you asked the question(s) in here.
 
I primarily hunt squirrels and rabbits. (both rodents) most rodents have extremely low incidents of rabies with the exception of wood chucks bites from squirrels are considered low risk...Raccoons skunks foxes and coyotes and bats seem to be the chief perpetrators...The research I've done seems to suggest that rabies is spread through saliva and contact with fluids or tissue from the animals brain or spinal cord..Everynow and than I get spattered with blood and all thoght the risk is low I can't help but wonder about it from time to time...
 
RescueRiley said:
IRaccoons skunks foxes and coyotes and bats seem to be the chief perpetrators
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Actually it is a complete misconception that bats are festering with rabies.

Bats are one of the most misunderstood animals in the world. One such misconception about bats is that they are all rabid. Bats can contract rabies, but they also suffer the symptoms of the disease and eventually die from it. Bats are not unaffected carriers of rabies. So if all bats had rabies, there would be no bats in the world. When bat specimens are sent into state laboratories for testing, the number of bats with rabies is around 5-10%. This figure is highly inflated because only those bats that are suspected of having rabies are brought in to be tested. Past research indicates that the actual incidence of rabies in bat populations is less than 0.5% in most areas.

Chances of coming in contact with a rabid bat is very rare. In fact, chances are better to die from getting struck by lightning, a plane crash, falling down a flight of stairs, or being killed by your spouse. Actually, you have a higher chance of winning your state lottery that being bitten by a bat with rabies.

Bats can get the rabies virus, but the incidence of bats and rabies is very low, usually only about one half of one percent of bats tested, test positive for the virus. If you take into consideration that people have a much higher chance of getting attacked by a dog, falling down a flight of stairs, or being struck by lightning and dying than dying of a bat bite you can see that rabies is rare. Chances are even better in winning your state lottery, than getting bitten by a bat with rabies.
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Sorry for thread jacking but bats are something I'm pretty passionate about (I am a member of Bat Conservation International) and try to educate people about them whenever I can.
 
.5% is still alot. Since I have several hundred bats in my backyard, that means there are 2-4 of them with rabies. The chances are low. But with my luck with Murphys Law it would not surprise me. I just try to ignore it.
 
dd61999 said:
.5% is still alot. Since I have several hundred bats in my backyard, that means there are 2-4 of them with rabies.
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Not necessarily. What that 0.5% can mean is world-wide or nation-wide or area-wide, which leaves some populations disease-free and others more heavily infected. Probabilities like that mean if any get it, it will spread widely within that population; otherwise, none may have it.

The best bet is to check with veterinarians in the area to find what local incidence looks like, and what signs might tell you if an individual specimen is rabid. Unfortunately, early signs are hard to see but the animal may still be infectious.
 
Bare rib No worries I'm pro bat as well...We're having a bit of a problem with white nose fungus in our bats hear in the North east...I was just reporting what I read on line..(I don't remember the site off hand but it simply said that a bite from a bat ( among several other animals) is considered high risk...I've been around bats by the thousands while spelunking and sleeping outdoors too my knowledege have never been bitten (although those S. american bats can be sneaky) Bats are cool no doubt and raccoons remain one of my favorite animals....and they were listed as one of the most likely rabies carriers out there...Besides the information I got can be inaccurate I've read alot of stuff off internet searches that maid me raise an eyebrow in regards to there legitimacy...Cheers.
 
The Area that they are referring to wouldn't be your back yard but more like a 100 mile radius ie the county or region you live in. Instead of several hundreds think more like multiple 1000s. Bats that do contract rabies usually loose the ability to fly and hunt very quickly and then die very quickly. Do you have a Bat Box or do they have a natural dwelling?
 
Riley, if you are ever or even think you are ever exposed to it the best thing to do is to take yourself and the animal to a doctor. They can usually test the animal to see if it has rabies. When infected with rabies it travels up the peripheral nerves to your brain and you won't really have any symptoms until it gets to you brain. The time it takes is dependent upon where you were infected and how long the nerve/nerves are that it's using to travel up to the CNS. Once it reaches your brain it has almost a 100% mortality rate so if you even think you possibly came in contact and it got into your skin or mucous membranes somehow then it would be best to get the prophylactic treatment for it. I can't stress again the importance of washing your hands thoroughly as it really does drastically decrease the chance of contracting rabies.
 
Bare Rib said:
The Area that they are referring to wouldn't be your back yard but more like a 100 mile radius ie the county or region you live in. Instead of several hundreds think more like multiple 1000s. Bats that do contract rabies usually loose the ability to fly and hunt very quickly and then die very quickly. Do you have a Bat Box or do they have a natural dwelling?
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I dont get it percentage don't change wether it is 100 or 1000's. And the fact rabies have been found in my area do not make me at ease either. However, I still welcome the bats to control the insects since I live on the wetlands of long Island,NY.
 
I hate bats and will kill them if they invade my home.

I live in an old house and they have seriously f-kd with me in the past.

Also CDC reccomends that if you wake up and you have a bat in the room and it tests positive, or you can't test it to get the shots.

Luckily my kitties hate bats and have pretty much cleaned them out of my house.

They stay outside fine. They come in my house I have their *ss;):thumbup:

My wife works for the health dept and I'd say roughly half of the ones she has tested are positive.

Most of the bites come from people who try to "rescue" them when they are acting funny and the little b*stards bite them.:thumbdn:

Back to the original topic there's been one, maybe two trappers here in the state that got rabies when they cut themselves skinning animals they didn't know were rabid.
 
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