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Rabies Symptoms in People

If you've seen the movie "Old Yeller," you know just how traumatic the rabies virus can be when it strikes the family pet. However, rabies can be transmitted from animals to humans. And if you think seeing Old Yeller die is sad, can you imagine how much worse things could be when it's Aunt Bessy?

  1. How People Get Rabies.

    • Rabies in humans, while rare, is contracted the same way rabies is contracted in animals--by being bitten by an animal that is already infected. Sometimes it could be several years after the bite before you'll even notice any of the symptoms.

    Rabies Incubation

    • The average incubation period for a person initially infected with rabies is anywhere from a month to two months, but it can also be as short a time as 10 days.

    Initial Symptoms.

    • If you've been bitten by an animal, the best way to check if you might have rabies is to catch the animal and have it checked for the infection. If that is not possible, for instance, if it is a wild animal that runs away, here are some initial symptoms to look for:

      • Tingling, itching and pain shooting from the bite location.

      • Fever, chills, fatigue and muscle aches. These, of course, are common symptoms of colds and flu as well, so get advice from a medical professional.

      It is best if you can catch rabies early and have the infection treated before it gets to the later stages where the symptoms, and consequences become much more dire.

    Later Stage Rabies.

    • If you fail to recognize that the throbbing, pain-shooting bite wound is rabies, you'll encounter some fairly severe symptoms down the road. Later stage rabies infection initially causes a high fever (over 102) accompanied by agitation and confusion, and eventually seizures, a coma and death.

    Paralytic Rabies

    • An even rarer form of rabies can be contracted should you be bitten by a vampire bat. Paralytic rabies will cause your muscles to shut down, and you'll be unable to move the part of the body that was bitten. Over time, without treatment, this paralysis will spread throughout the body, eventually causing death.

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