I am in love. His name is Fabio.

Fabio, whose hair is just marvelous.

New kittens are the best. Ok, second best...my cat Puck is and always will be the best. Evidence: he's already stopped hissing at the fuzzy, fuzzy space invader. It is really a wonderful thing to have a ridiculous little interloper who doesn't have a sense of decorum or style come gallumphing into the room, flip onto his back to mercilessly attack a bit of paper, jerk to his feet and dash away with a crazed, haunted look in his pretty eyes.
  Makes my inner kitten want to do the same. Rowwwwr!
(We kitten owners fascinate only ourselves with our loving, fascinated ramblings, blissfully unaware of the boredom we inspire in others, sorry!)
--Judy
www.drjudyo.com

My Daughter is Not Rabid...probably.

Today is my eldest daughter's 18th birthday. She is ambitious, responsible, and very smart, mostly. Starting college in September. She spent part of the day in a (human) healthcare clinic getting the second in a series of 4 shots for post-exposure prophylaxis against Rabies.

A baby bat was found at the place where she is working this summer.  A well-intended but misguided effort was mounted to save the little bugger. Sadly, it died. Because of the summer heat, the bat was too decomposed for the state lab to test it for Rabies. As a result, 14 children are undergoing a series of post-exposure prophylaxis shots.

The bat didn't bite anyone, but the kids were exposed.
RABIES IS FATAL IN PEOPLE.
To be safe, all the kids who directly handled the little guy had to be protected in case the virus made it into their system through the cuts and scratches that kids at camp wear like badges of honor. With the shots, they should all do fine.

The moral of this story is that
1) bats carry Rabies, even baby bats.
2) kids aren't immune to Rabies even if they have veterinary parents
3) even smart people can have impaired thinking when there are helpless babies involved.

******************

Bats, raccoons, skunks and foxes may be affected by Rabies.
Even if they look healthy. Even if they look tame.
These are wild animals. Do not pet them. Do not feed them.
If they are acting not-so-wild, assume the worst and avoid them!
Call animal control if they are suffering or in a position to hurt somebody.

If you do get bitten, confine the animal if possible, and call animal control immediately.
Cleanse your bite wound thoroughly and get yourself to a doctor right away for care.
If the animal is available for testing, you probably won't have to have shots. If they cannot test the animal that bit you, or if it tests positive for Rabies, you MUST get the shots.
It's not just about you coming down with Rabies,  but also about  the rabid version of you infecting your family, and the nice nurses and doctors in the hospital where you will be taken if you come up with weird neurologic symptoms in a few weeks or months.
So don't be a hero, and don't be stupid.

Here are a couple of case reports from the CDC website. Scary, true stories.
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5615a1.htm
www.drjudyo.com