Plan unveiled to end rabies globally

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/25/us-science-rabies-idUKKCN0HK28520140925

Interesting! I think this is great news for poorer areas, who may not have been able to afford vaccines before.

Good luck to them!

Mmmmhhh... Good for the dogs but rabies is carried and spread by many more animals than dogs. What about them?

One step at a time, is my guess. They have to treat domesticated animals first, as they'll have the closest proximity to humans. I wouldn't want to get close enough to a raccoon to vaccinate it!

As you say, it's a start!

I'll never forget seeing a film of a man in the grip of hydra-phobia - what a terrible way to die. I had no idea that the number of people being killed each year was so high.

Smallpox has been eradicated, let's hope this is a giant step towards eradicating rabies.

Was it the infamous black and white one?

Well it was black and white Eleanor, because it was a very long time ago - whether it is infamous or not I have no idea.

The poor man was contained in a kind of net/hammock thing - he was dying of thirst but the sight/smell/proximity of water had thrown him into an uncontrollable terror.

I think I've seen it - or, at least, something similar. Awful!

That's great news

This is an excellent start. But just as an example.....

From the CDC.
"Quote"
Rabies is a disease that naturally affects only mammals. People are mammals, and so are most of our pets like cats and dogs. Lots of farm animals like cows and horses are mammals, and so are wild animals like foxes and skunks, raccoons and bats.
"End quote"

It will take far more than this to irradicate the problem.
Thankfully, rabies is not an issue in Australia.

Yes, it will take a lot more than this.

But control must start somewhere. I'm not so sure that complete eradication is possible, but maybe a large reduction is possible?

I think we should also bear in mind that there are two 'types' of rabies - ' ferocious' and 'paralytic'. Animals such as cattle & horses (as far as I am aware) only produce symptoms of the paralytic kind & are, therefore, less dangerous as they do not succumb to rage & attack.

I think it's very important to target the animals which pose a greater risk. Dogs are far more widespread and accepted in human-populated areas than certain other species, so they're more likely to transmit the disease. The majority of humans exposed to the disease contract it from domesticated animals. My guess is that the next domesticated animal vaccine will be for cats.