Family's shocking rabies ordeal

A new puppy from the SPCA turned into a medical drama...

Durban - A Morningside family’s joy at adopting a puppy turned into an ordeal that left them with no choice but to put down their pet, and undergo months of medical treatment.

The family, who did not want to be named publicly, discovered that their newly adopted puppy had had rabies, and they only recently breathed a sigh of relief when they were declared rabies-free.

In a further ordeal, the family had tried to recoup the costs of their expenses from the Durban and Coast SPCA, from where they adopted the puppy, but have hit dead ends.

The family’s agony was shared on East Coast Radio earlier this week, and posted online in their Consumerwatch column, in which the family recounted their story.

The family had adopted a female puppy at the beginning of February from the Durban and Coast SPCA, and despite being told that the puppy had had a health check and vaccinations, they noticed something was amiss a few weeks later.

When the family took the puppy to a vet, showing signs of lethargy and not eating, the vet said the puppy should be put down because it was likely it had rabies.

However, the situation was further complicated because the father and son had been bitten by the puppy, drawing blood.

They were informed that they could be at risk as well.

The family went to Life Entabeni, on the advice of their doctor, and the father and son were given shots of the anti-rabies immunoglobulin (RIG).

The puppy was put down and tests revealed the puppy did have rabies.

According to the report, the family and two friends of the children who had been in contact with the puppy, had to undergo treatment.

The mother said that getting treatment was not easy.

They called state hospitals and were allegedly told that the hospitals were not certain if they had enough immunisation vaccines, and as a result had to receive their full six weeks’ treatment at Entabeni.

The costs of the treatment amounted to R30 000 and they were only recently given a clean bill of health.

The family has been in a tussle with the SPCA requesting that they pay for the costs of the medical treatment, to which the SPCA said as an NGO they could not.

The family were also not happy that they weren’t informed that the rabies inoculation is only given to puppies at 12 weeks, because this could have influenced their decision on whether to take the puppy.

Last year, eThekwini’s Health Department was notified about seven cases of rabid dogs, a figure lower than previous years.

Vaccinations

Vusi Mbuthu of the eThekwini Municipality’s health unit said dog vaccinations were conducted every three years by the Department of Agriculture veterinary section together with municipal health staff.

“Where suspected rabies is confirmed by a positive diagnostic test, the laboratory forwards this information to the City Health Outbreak Section, who in turn initiate an investigation involving all role-players,” said Mbuthu.

Greg Swale, hospital manager at Life Entabeni Hospital, said rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) treatment is given to patients who have been exposed to known or possibly rabid animals.

“The treatment is almost 100 percent effective at preventing rabies in humans, if correctly and timeously administered,” he said.

Caroline Smith, general manager at the Durban and Coast SPCA, said they had been shocked at the incident, and prioritised the case when they heard of it.

As the first case of its type experienced at any SPCA in South Africa, this case had received national SPCA attention, said Smith.

“Rabies is a risk that applies to the acquisition of any animal, whether from the SPCA, pet shops, breeders or other agencies and we believe that that risk is understood by animal owners, with education being provided by veterinarians, the state vet and in the media from time to time,” she said.

“The SPCA follows South African veterinary protocol and first vaccinates puppies for rabies at 3 months old. If a primary vaccination is administered at an earlier age it may not be effective,” she said.

The puppy in question was handed in as unwanted, and underwent five health checks during her seven day stay at the SPCA.

Rabies can incubate for months and, during the incubation phase, an animal would show no signs of being ill and would appear completely normal, she said.

“Rabies is only detectable once the symptoms appear and can be confirmed only at post-mortem.

“Accordingly there are no tests that can be performed to ascertain whether an animal has rabies as a routine check,” said Smith.

Smith said the family wanted them to cover the costs of their private vaccinations, which they could not.

“To fund the private medical vaccinations for the family would be a breach of our constitution which requires us to devote our resources to the protection and welfare of animals and to the prevention of cruelty to animals,” she said, adding that free post-exposure prophylaxis should never be unavailable at a local state clinic.

Smith added that as rabies was a notifiable disease, the district surgeon should be contacted, and it is their responsibility to follow up each time there is a positive rabies case and to ensure the vaccines are received.

Independent on Saturday