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Rabies Danger From Roadkill

It is highly unlikely--but theoretically possible—to get rabies from handling roadkill animals. Because rabies is a fatal disease, it’s good to err on the side of caution. Wear gloves when handling dead animals, as the virus could be transmitted if you have any scratches, scrapes or cuts on your hands.

  1. Disease Transmission

    • The rabies virus lives in the saliva and nerve tissue of mammals. It must get inside the body to cause infection—this usually happens when the rabid animal bites another animal or human. It also can be transmitted if saliva or nerve tissue comes in contact with an open wound or mucous membrane (such as your eyes, nose or mouth).

    Infected Wildlife

    • When you find a dead animal beside the road, there’s no way to tell if it had rabies without testing its brain tissue. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 90 percent of rabid animals in the U.S. are wild animals, not pets. Of these, 35 percent are raccoons and the rest are bats, skunks and foxes. Be particularly careful when you handle one of these species.

    Dead animal, dead virus?

    • The rabies virus is easily killed. According to the North Dakota Department of Health, a rabies virus exposed to the air becomes inactive within two hours. If the animal has been dead for more than a few hours, any virus in its saliva is dead. It could still be viable, however, in nerve tissue such as the brain.

    Practical Precautions

    • There is no documented case of a person getting rabies from touching roadkill, says Dr. Scott Weese, associate professor of pathobiology at the University of Guelph, Canada. Though the risk is small, rabies is a dangerous disease that is almost always fatal once symptoms appear. To be on the safe side, wear rubber gloves or use a shovel to move the dead animal.

    Cooking Instructions

    • Is it safe to eat roadkill animals? If you’re inclined to make use of the meat you find along the highway, wear rubber gloves when you handle the animal—especially during skinning and butchering. Cook the meat thoroughly to make sure any viruses or parasites are destroyed.

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