Sunday, April 19, 2009

THINGS TO BE DONE WHEN A DOG BITES YOU

Dogs are considered as man's best friend. Aside from that, dogs are the most common carrier of rabies. Rabies is a viral neuroinvasive disease that causes acute encephalitis (inflammation or swelling of the brain) in warm-blooded animals. it is very deadly. In just minutes a patient with a rabies virus in his/her system dies immediately. When a dog bites you, you must do the following;

1. Immediately wash the bitten area with soap and flowing water. By doing this, we get rid of the saliva of the dog that is left in the bitten area.
2. Immediately catch the dog and place it in a cage for observation. Usually when a dog is a carrier of rabies, once it bites a person it will slowly lose its good health condition and eventually will die. Once the dog becomes ill, it means that the person bitten is already infected with the virus called rabies.
3. Bring the patient immediately to the nearest medical institution for anti-rabies shots. In health centers, the shots are for free.

These three procedures are very essential in saving a person bitten by a carrier of rabies.