What is Rabies? Rabies is a viral infection that causes acute inflammation of the brain in warm blooded animals, including humans. It is most commonly transferred when an infected animal bites of orally breaks the skin of another animal. The bacterial surfaces on the infected animal's teeth and enters into the blood stream of the victim. The only way to treat rabies is during the "incubation period" or the period between infection and when the symptoms present themselves. This can be a few days up to a few months depending on the strength of the infected individual's immune system.
Rabies Symptoms: Once the symptoms of Rabies occur, the disease is nearly impossible to treat. These symptoms include fever, cough or sore throat, or both, pain, itching, burning, or numbness at the area of the bite, anxiety or agitation that builds up during the period of the symptoms, and trouble breathing steadily.
After the first symptoms begin, several days afterward, additional and more severe symptoms may present themselves, such as heavy anxiety, hallucinations, delirium, fear of water, or the fear of air, muscle spasms in the neck, or diaphragm, usually followed by seizures, paralysis, wide fluctuations in temperature pulse and blood pressure, coma which usually carries over into heart failure or strong strokes.
During the first wave of symptoms, it is possible, though difficult and painful, to treat the disease, however, if the disease is allowed to progress to the second stage of its development, treatment is nearly impossible. This disease usually ends in death unless action is taken soon after the bit or oral contact took place. Around 20 days after the contact or bite occurred, the symptoms might begin setting in, however, in some cases it can take up to 60 days for the first set of symptoms to manifest.