Thankfully, it's also easy and inexpensive to prevent. Here's what you need to know about this dangerous disease, and how to keep your horse and yourself safe. According to Steve Halstead, DVM, the equine, swine, and companion-animal program veterinarian with the Michigan Department of Agriculture in Lansing, the virus can cause disease in any mammal, including humans. In fact, horses and humans are two mammalian species with above-average susceptibility to the disease. Small wildlife such as squirrels and other rodents, on the other hand, are quite resistant to developing the disease.
Bites are the big risk, as far as rabies is concerned.
In other words, your horse can't get rabies merely through unbroken-skin contact with a rabid animal. Rabies is a disease of the central nervous system. Here's what happens when a horse or other mammal is bitten by a rabid animal. First, the virus enters the victim's body through the bite wound. It proceeds to replicate in the local area of the bite, thereby invading the local nerves.