Any animal bitten or scratched by either a wild, carnivorous mammal or a bat that is not available for testing should be regarded as having been exposed to rabies. Unvaccinated dogs, cats, and ferrets exposed to a rabid animal should be euthanized immediately. If the owner is unwilling to have this done, the animal should be placed in strict isolation for 6 months and vaccinated 1 month before being released. Dogs and cats that are currently vaccinated are kept under observation for 45 days. Pathogenesis of experimentally induced rabies in domestic ferrets.
People usually get get rabies from the bite of a rabid animal.
It is also possible, but quite rare, that people may get rabies if infectious material from a rabid animal, such as saliva, gets directly into their eyes, nose, mouth, or a wound. Non-bite exposures to rabies are very rare. Occasionally reports of non-bite exposure are such that postexposure prophylaxis is given. Inhalation of aerosolized rabies virus is also a potential non-bite route of exposure, but other than laboratory workers, most people are unlikely to encounter an aerosol of rabies virus. Medical assistance should be obtained as soon as possible after an exposure.