Even if the pet stays in the house all the time and has no contact with wild animals, if it bites someone, the animal will come under a lot of scrutiny. In a worst-case scenario, the pet could be euthanized for testing. Obtaining brain tissue is still the only certain way to test animals for rabies. Educate children about the disease and let them know they can catch it if a domestic or wild animal bites them. And finally, be extremely careful with bats.
Bats have tiny, razor sharp teeth and can sometimes bite people without their knowledge.
Any contact with a bat should be reported to public health authorities, whether military or civilian. The man who died of rabies in Amador County was infected with the type of rabies associated with the Mexican Freetail bat, which is fairly common in California. The man told medical authorities that he had handled a bat, but that it did not bite him. Rabies is statistically rare, but it is always out there in the wild animal population. A little awareness and common sense can keep it out of the human population.