Rabies vaccines for animals and exposed people

Animal vaccines and vaccines given to people serve different purposes and follow different schedules. An animal's vaccination record is useful information, yet it should not be used alone to decide that wound care or human post-exposure treatment is unnecessary.

Routine vaccination of eligible dogs, cats and other animals reduces the chance that they become infected and pass rabies through saliva. The correct product and booster timing depend on local veterinary rules, the animal species and the vaccine used.

People with ongoing occupational or travel-related risk may be offered vaccination before exposure. Previous vaccination simplifies later management but does not remove the need for medical evaluation and additional vaccine after a suspected exposure.

Immediately wash the wound thoroughly with soap and running water. Apply an appropriate antiseptic if available, cover the area lightly, and contact a healthcare service urgently. Do not delay while trying to locate vaccine paperwork or waiting to see whether symptoms develop.

Share the animal species, ownership, behaviour, vaccination record, location of the incident, type of contact and whether the animal can be safely assessed by veterinary or public-health authorities. Do not capture or handle a stray or wild animal yourself.

Seek urgent assessment after saliva reaches broken skin, the eyes or the mouth, or after a bite or scratch from an animal that could carry rabies. Exposures involving the face, head, neck or hands, deep wounds, or an animal behaving unusually deserve immediate attention.

Post-exposure care may include wound treatment, a course of rabies vaccine and, for some people, rabies immunoglobulin. Decisions depend on the contact, animal, local rabies situation and previous vaccination, so a clinician or public-health team should make the assessment.

Ask whether the contact counts as a rabies exposure, whether immunoglobulin is indicated, which vaccine schedule applies, how missed doses should be handled, and whether tetanus protection or treatment for bacterial wound infection is also needed.