More than half of U.S. dog owners expressed concerns about vaccinating their dogs, including against rabies, according to a new study published Saturday in the journal Vaccine. The study comes as anti-vaccine sentiments among humans have exploded in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pets are now often considered to be a member of the family, and their health-care decisions are weighed with the same gravity. But the consequences of not vaccinating animals can be just as dire as humans. Dogs, for example, are responsible for 99% of rabies cases globally. Rabies, which is often transmitted via a bite, is almost always fatal for animals and people once clinical signs appear. A drop in rabies vaccination could constitute a serious public health threat.

In the new study, the authors surveyed 2,200 people and found 53% had some concern about the safety, efficacy or necessity of canine vaccines. Nearly 40% were concerned that vaccines could cause dogs to develop autism, a theory without any scientific merit.

  • edric@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    Welp, looks like rabies is gonna have a huge comeback. I bet there’s a huge overlap with antivaxx owners and unleashed pets too.

    • PetDinosaurs@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      It’s really sad too.

      One interpretation of the cause of this problem is that vaccines are just too effective. No one has polio, not to mention even chicken pox.

      A resurgence of rabies (or, god forbid, small pox) will clear that up real quick.

      Then again, too much of this planet have been fed a steady diet of propaganda for most of their adult lives.

    • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Cats too. I hate that people let cats roam, it’s irresponsible and shitty to just let your pet out to do whatever it wants with everyone else’s property. And now there are gonna be unvaccinated, rabid cats roaming and infecting it further.

      Hey maybe the apocalypse is coming and this is the start of a zombie/aggressive rabies outbreak!

        • Son_of_dad@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          Can you imagine if dog people just opened their doors at night, let their dogs fuck off to wreck property, kill pets, get killed themselves, and destroy native birds and animals? They’d rightly be called out and have their pets taken away. Take care of YOUR pet and keep it on YOUR property. I’ve had issues with neighbor cats causing damages to my property, and if your pet becomes my pest, I will treat it as such.

          I remember a neighbor’s cat once almost tore through my window screen to get at my pet parrot. If that cat had made it inside my house and attacked my pet, he would not have made it out alive.

          • systemglitch@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Dogs and cats are not the same. And that sucks.

            I’m also glad I don’t know you and I bet that is mutual. We can celebrate this non-familularity.

    • Bernie Ecclestoned@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      As the disease progresses, the person may experience delirium, abnormal behavior, hallucinations, hydrophobia (fear of water), and insomnia. The acute period of disease typically ends after 2 to 10 days. Once clinical signs of rabies appear, the disease is nearly always fatal,