Is a Rabies vax necessary?

[georgegeorgia]

After watching a Philippines YouTuber go on about rabies which you can get from all mammals, 

 

I thought only dogs but apparently a cat scratch too 

 

Im thinking a Rabies vaccination may now be necessary 

 

Is it a threat as much as this YouTuber says

Anyone have the rough cost in Thailand, apparently it's 3 injection over a few months?

 

Have you ever had Rabies?

Have you even saw anyone with this ?

,are you wanting this injection yourself ?

I'm wondering if it's all a beat up and just promotion by vax companies.

There may of course be side effects to this vaccination 

 

 

Edited August 8 by georgegeorgia

[scubascuba3]

There have been recent cases of dogs in Pattaya with Rabies. I was bitten a few years ago so got the rabies jabs. I would only bother getting the jabs if bitten

[Will B Good]

1 minute ago, scubascuba3 said:

There have been recent cases of dogs in Pattaya with Rabies. I was bitten a few years ago so got the rabies jabs. I would only bother getting the jabs if bitten

 

Agree....never bothered until I was bitten last year.

 

Injections weren't fun...lots of them and occasionally a little painful

[Liverpool Lou]

"Is a Rabies vax necessary?"

No.  In the unlikely situation of getting an infected bite in Thailand, get the jabs done immediately after that, one in a million chance of a, bite.  Unless you're in a place with lots of stray dogs running wild, I suppose.

[Liverpool Lou]

19 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

There have been recent cases of dogs in Pattaya with Rabies. I was bitten a few years ago so got the rabies jabs. I would only bother getting the jabs if bitten

Agreed.

[giddyup]

I don't think Rabies is survivable. Once you have it you're dead.

[Will B Good]

 

 

Relevant?

 

We did make the effort to get vaccinated against Japanese encephalopathy .......we live out in the sticks......no good rushing to get a jab after you've contracted that.

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, giddyup said:

I don't think Rabies is survivable. Once you have it you're dead.

Yep, so if bitten someone would be crazy not to get the jabs, but many don't bother, because of cost probably 

[tweedledee2]

   Three weeks ago, a neighbor's dog bit my wife on her lower leg. This happened while I was shopping in Surin. When I returned home, she explained what happened and said the dog hadn't had a rabies shot in over 2 years. She said was going to the government hospital to have it treated. She took her mother with her to the hospital and after waiting 2 hours, staff told her to go home and come back the next morning because the ER was full. 

    The next day the dog owner took her and her mother to a rural hospital about 15 minutes away and got her first shot. She was back home within an hour. I drove her to get her 2nd and 3rd shots a week apart and she will have the final shot on Aug. 19th. Four shots 30 baht each.

     She never complained of any pain with the first 2 shots but did with the 3rd one. When she showed me the injection site it was too high up on the arm near the humorous head and should have been at least 2 inches lower into the muscle.

[scubascuba3]

In Pattaya, there used to be loads of aggressive alpha male dogs around the Pratumnak area from Bali Hai, they've mostly gone so much lower risk of rabies

[scubascuba3]

2 minutes ago, tweedledee2 said:

   Three weeks ago, a neighbor's dog bit my wife on her lower leg. This happened while I was shopping in Surin. When I returned home, she explained what happened and said the dog hadn't had a rabies shot in over 2 years. She said was going to the government hospital to have it treated. She took her mother with her to the hospital and after waiting 2 hours, staff told her to go home and come back the next morning because the ER was full. 

    The next day the dog owner took her and her mother to a rural hospital about 15 minutes away and got her first shot. She was back home within an hour. I drove her to get her 2nd and 3rd shots a week apart and she will have the final shot on Aug. 19th. Four shots 30 baht each.

     She never complained of any pain with the first 2 shots but did with the 3rd one. When she showed me the injection site it was too high up on the arm near the humorous head and should have been at least 2 inches lower into the muscle.

My costs were:

First shot in the wound 3,000 baht Pattaya City Hospital - possibly falang price.

3 subsequent shots 250 baht each Bang Lamung Hospital.

Someone i know paid 19,000 baht at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, milked as usual

[nakhonandy]

A few years ago my wife, Thai, got bitten and scratched by a cat.

She took no chances and had the rabies jabs.

If you believe you're at risk of rabies get the jabs, no matter what the cost it's better than contracting the disease. 

[freedomnow]

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

"Is a Rabies vax necessary?"

No.  In the unlikely situation of getting an infected bite in Thailand, get the jabs done immediately after that, one in a million chance of a, bite.  Unless you're in a place with lots of stray dogs running wild, I suppose.

Scratches can be enough in neighbouring countries from kittens etc doing a visa-run.

I got 3 vaccines finally 2022 at a public hospital.

Edited August 9 by freedomnow

[Freddy42OZ]

8 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

After watching a Philippines YouTuber go on about rabies which you can get from all mammals, 

 

I thought only dogs but apparently a cat scratch too 

 

Im thinking a Rabies vaccination may now be necessary 

 

Is it a threat as much as this YouTuber says

Anyone have the rough cost in Thailand, apparently it's 3 injection over a few months?

 

Have you ever had Rabies?

Have you even saw anyone with this ?

,are you wanting this injection yourself ?

I'm wondering if it's all a beat up and just promotion by vax companies.

There may of course be side effects to this vaccination 

 

 

 

 

Just don't bite anyone.

[Presnock]

8 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

After watching a Philippines YouTuber go on about rabies which you can get from all mammals, 

 

I thought only dogs but apparently a cat scratch too 

 

Im thinking a Rabies vaccination may now be necessary 

 

Is it a threat as much as this YouTuber says

Anyone have the rough cost in Thailand, apparently it's 3 injection over a few months?

 

Have you ever had Rabies?

Have you even saw anyone with this ?

,are you wanting this injection yourself ?

I'm wondering if it's all a beat up and just promotion by vax companies.

There may of course be side effects to this vaccination 

 

 

Recommended by US State dept years ago...I had my series, then wife got scratched by a cat that refused to get out of the driveway at a restaurant so the doctor recommended shots, then one of our dogs had a seizure and when hugging the dog, my daughter got nipped - doctors again recommended the shots, not very expensive and better than rabies which roams around here quite often.

[Freddy42OZ]

1 hour ago, giddyup said:

I don't think Rabies is survivable. Once you have it you're dead.

 

You are absolutely right.

Rabies is almost always fatal once symptoms appear, but rabies deaths can be prevented with prompt post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP). PEP stops the virus from reaching the central nervous system. However, even with supportive care, few patients survive rabies. As of May 2024, the CDC has documented fewer than 20 cases of human survival from clinical rabies.

[Presnock]

Just now, Freddy42OZ said:

 

 

Just don't bite anyone.

I used to walk a block or so to my office at the US embassy - right after getting my first rabies shot, a soi dog nipped my leg and I had to get several shots in that wound.  I had been jogging here for many years and never had any problems...one never knows.

[tweedledee2]

1 hour ago, giddyup said:

I don't think Rabies is survivable. Once you have it you're dead.

There have only been about 30 reported survivors worldwide with a death rate of nearly 60,00 every year. 

[georgegeorgia]

1 minute ago, tweedledee2 said:

There have only been about 30 reported survivors worldwide with a death rate of nearly 60,00 every year. 

60,000 ?😯

[impulse]

17 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

My costs were:

First shot in the wound 3,000 baht Pattaya City Hospital - possibly falang price.

3 subsequent shots 250 baht each Bang Lamung Hospital.

Someone i know paid 19,000 baht at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, milked as usual

 

It's not milking (so much) if they also got the rabies immune globulin in addition the the vaccines.  That one is spendy.  The international clinic in China where I got bitten wanted to charge me $2,000 USD.  So I went to the local clinic and they charged me a few bucks for just the first vaccine shot.  Then I finished the course of vaccines in Thailand, also very cheap.

 

I have no opinion how smart that was,  You'll have to get that advice from a medical expert.

 

Edited August 9 by impulse

[Will B Good]

15 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

My costs were:

First shot in the wound 3,000 baht Pattaya City Hospital - possibly falang price.

3 subsequent shots 250 baht each Bang Lamung Hospital.

Someone i know paid 19,000 baht at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital, milked as usual

 

OMG.....  8 shots over four weeks, sometimes a single shot, sometimes two, one in each arm....... 1,200 B......but they could have saline shots as this was way out in the sticks.

[ThaiFelix]

Is a Rabies vax necessary?

 

If youre associating with bargirls yes, however well fed escorts are a bit less risky.

                       

[georgegeorgia]

1 minute ago, ThaiFelix said:

Is a Rabies vax necessary?

 

If youre associating with bargirls yes, however well fed escorts are a bit less risky.

                       

No idea what your on about ,you just keep smoking the wacky tobacky 

[freedomnow]

It is quite cheap at public hospitals - but I think you have to be presenting as scratched and concerned to get it at local cost rate fast.

I just explained I had concerns going to neighbouring countries as best I could convey in simple English.

[FolkGuitar]

"Is a Rabies vax necessary?"

 

Necessary?  No.

A good idea?  Perhaps.

Do you believe in Health Insurance? Would you drive your car without insurance?

For one quick stick every few years, it's insurance against possible 4 injections and a bit of worry. It's no different than any other insurance.

[The Fugitive]

Risk category 3 applies from what I can see? https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/hcp/prevention-recommendations/pre-exposure-prophylaxis.html

[sandyf]

9 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

 

Im thinking a Rabies vaccination may now be necessary 

Not really, if you have suspicion of contact you would be straight in for it again.

You are right that cats are also carriers.

Prior to the pandemic we used to have the government people come round and vaccinate all the cats and dogs against rabies. Unfortunately it stopped and never restarted.

[newbee2022]

9 hours ago, georgegeorgia said:

After watching a Philippines YouTuber go on about rabies which you can get from all mammals, 

 

I thought only dogs but apparently a cat scratch too 

 

Im thinking a Rabies vaccination may now be necessary 

 

Is it a threat as much as this YouTuber says

Anyone have the rough cost in Thailand, apparently it's 3 injection over a few months?

 

Have you ever had Rabies?

Have you even saw anyone with this ?

,are you wanting this injection yourself ?

I'm wondering if it's all a beat up and just promotion by vax companies.

There may of course be side effects to this vaccination 

 

 

Well, in case you should ask the dogs before they bite you. "Do you have Rabies?"🤔

[connda]

I work with strays and temple dogs as well as having a mangerie of dogs, cats, and birds myself. 
If you work with animals, nips happen.  Even saliva from an infected animal reaching on open sore can cause infection.  And although I've been referred to as an "antivaxxer" due to my stance on mRNA vaccines (which I refuse to take until there is about another 5 to 7 years of long-term testing by independent researchers), I do take rabies boosters.

The initial vaccination schedule was 5 shots back when I got my first set a whole lot of years ago.  It looks as though those guidelines have changed to now be a two shot series on day 0 and day 7.

If you get nipped after the initial vaccinations, the shot series consists of a Gamma-goblin shot and three rabies shots about a week apart. 

I normally get boosted every three years unless I'm nipped or slobbered on around an open wound. Slobber happens more often than nips.

Have I seen a person with rabies?  No - that would be a dead person.  Those who survive rabies, and those are very few people, my guess is that dying would have been kinder. 

Do YOU need rabies shots?   It depends on your exposure to animals which are not yours.  If you don't interact with animals, then there is no real need.  If you are nipped or bit by a stray - then yes, you need the shots to be safe.

The price of rabies vaccines should be under 1000 THB.  At my local government hospital I think my shots were around 350 THB.  I'd suggest getting shots at a government clinic.  If you go to a private hospital get the vaccine costs up-front.  By the way - rabies vaccines for our dogs are free annually complements of the government program in our village.

Edited August 9 by connda

[ChrisKC]

If you have been bitten by a dog, there is a risk, so vaccination is necessary in my view. Going to any hospital for treatment, Doctors will recommend vaccination also. Nothing to do with anybody trying to sell you something!!

 

I have been bitten twice in Thailand while out cycling, first in 2010 and next time 2018 Neither dog was a soi dog.

 

The costs of treatment and the vaccinations were easily manageable - the injections - about ten in all - were not remotely painful for me and I can assure you I am a wimp when it comes to needles and seeing my own blood!

 

Anti-Vaxxer? Prepare to accept the risk!