Do not handle sick or injured wild animals, including baby animals. Call the police, ACO, or State Game Warden. If you must handle a dead animal, use heavy gloves, sticks, or other tools to avoid direct contact with saliva, brain tissue, or neural fluid. If you are bitten or scratched by an unfamiliar animal, do not try to guess if it is rabid. Call your doctor and the ACO for advice.
Incubation period varies depending on the location of the bite, wound, or exposure.
After the virus reaches the central nervous system the spread is relatively rapid 48 to 120 hours. The incubation period in wild animals is unknown and extremely variable. Management of Dogs and Cats that Bite Humans Vaccinated or unvaccinated dogs and cats that bite a human must be quarantined for at least 10 days. Vaccinated dogs and cats that have been exposed to a rabid animal must be boosted with rabies vaccine and quarantined for 45 days. Unvaccinated dogs and cats that have been exposed to a rabid animal should be euthanized or must be vaccinated for rabies and quarantined for 6 months.