Cute Animals and Rabies

What kind of animals get rabies?

Rabies is a disease that naturally affects only mammals (like raccoons, skunks, foxes and bats). You cannot get rabies from birds, snakes or fish. In the United States, rabies is much more common in wild animals than in pets like cats or dogs. This is because most people who take good care of their pets make sure that their pets get the rabies vaccinations.

In the United States today, about 93 of every 100 reported cases of rabies are in wild animals. Most of the cases are found in raccoons, skunks, bats, and foxes. Raccoons are the most common wild animal with rabies today. Cats had the largest number of reported rabies cases in pets.

Rabies cases in the United States (2001):
All animal cases 7,437

Domestic animals 497

Wild animals 6,939

Human cases 1

Domestic animals diagnosed with rabies-United States, 2001

Dogs 89

Cats 270

Cattle 82

Horses/ mules 51

Sheep/goats 3

Swine 2

Other Domestic 0

Wild animals diagnosed with rabies in the United States, 2001

Skunks 2,282

Foxes 437

Bats 1,281

Raccoons 2,767

Rodents/ rabbits 56

Other wild animals 116

Which animals can get rabies?