What should you know about rabies virus?

Rabies is a viral infection that affects the nervous system. It can spread when saliva from an infected mammal enters a bite, scratch, open wound or the eyes, mouth or nose. Contact with intact skin is not the same type of exposure.

Early symptoms may be vague, such as fever, discomfort or unusual sensations near an exposure site. Later illness can affect swallowing, movement, behaviour and alertness. Once symptoms develop, rabies is extremely serious, so prevention after a possible exposure matters more than waiting for signs.

Wash a bite or scratch immediately with soap and plenty of running water. If available, use an appropriate antiseptic after washing, and do not close or tightly cover a wound before medical assessment. Contact urgent medical services and describe the animal, the contact, the body site and whether saliva reached broken skin or a mucous membrane.

A clinician may recommend [Rabies Post-Exposure Prophylaxis](/treatments/acute-and-urgent-care/rabies-post-exposure-prophylaxis/), which can include vaccine and, for some exposures, rabies immunoglobulin. The decision is based on the exposure and the animal assessment.

Get urgent advice after any bite or scratch from a mammal that could carry rabies, especially when the animal is stray, unavailable for observation, behaving abnormally or from an area where rabies occurs. Do not wait for symptoms and do not rely on the wound looking small.

Ask whether the contact counts as an exposure, which preventive treatment is needed, when each dose should be given, and whether your previous rabies vaccination changes the plan.