Rabies

Rabies is a viral disease that affects all mammals, including cats, dogs, and humans, in the brain and spinal cord.

There's a reason why the word "rabies" makes people nervous: once symptoms show, rabies is almost always lethal.

A bite from an infected animal most commonly spreads it.

It can be passed on less commonly when an infected animal's saliva enters another animal's body via mucous membranes or an exposed, fresh wound.

If your cat comes into contact with wild animals, he or she is more likely to develop rabies.

Outbreaks can develop in wild animal populations or regions with many unvaccinated, unrestricted dogs and cats.

There is no effective test for detecting rabies in animals.

The most reliable test for diagnosis is the direct fluorescent antibody test; however, it can only be conducted after the animal has died.

The rabies virus can incubate in a cat's body for one week to more than a year before it emerges in the cat's saliva, and the cat is capable of transmitting the disease.