FULTON COUNTY, Ga — A case of rabies has been confirmed in Roswell. What’s concerning is that it was found in a cat.
Channel 2’s Wendy Corona visited the vet who saw it firsthand and says there may be a bigger issue.
Dr. Michael Ray took a feral cat in last Tuesday. That cat was known to live out in the woods with no human contact.
Ray said the man who brought the cat in told him the cat just let herself be taken, which was strange to him.
“But even more disturbing than that was how she was behaving. This is a cat that really couldn’t be touched and she was nonresponsive,” Ray said.
After further examination, the feral cat appeared to have paralytic rabies. She was euthanized and days later a test confirmed rabies.
Ray says it’s the first case he has seen in a cat from that area in his 18-year career.
“I would be concerned about maybe a rabid fox, or rabid skunk or rabid raccoon,” he said.
Corona visited the area near Holcomb Bridge Road where the cat was found and saw other cats near homes and one in the woods.
This case brings attention the need to vaccinate pets for their security.
Doctors say it’s such an aggressive virus to its host that animals often die within days of contracting the illness, which leaves them with less time to transmit.
Vaccines still remain the best line of defense.
Ray says if you see an animal that appears to need to help, don’t go near it. Instead call animal control.
Bites to vascular areas like your head and hand are most common and dangerous areas where the virus can be easily obtained.
WSBTV
