Rabies is an acute infectious disease caused by the invasion of the rabies virus into the body. It is zoonotic, mostly seen in carnivores such as canine and feline species. Humans are mainly infected and die as a result of being bitten by these infected animals. There is no excitement phase after onset, but hydrophobia occurs, beginning with symptoms such as high fever throughout the body, vomiting, headache, and pain at the bite site. Following these symptoms are limb weakness, abdominal distension, ataxia, muscle hypotonia, and complete urinary and fecal incontinence. The course of the disease can last up to 10 days and ultimately leads to death due to medullary paralysis and respiratory muscle paralysis.

The onset symptoms of rabies are obvious. Even people without medical knowledge can observe clear signs of illness. If your kitten shows signs of fear of people and prefers to hide in cool shady areas for long periods while constantly meowing, it may also be accompanied by hydrophobia, photophobia, and fear of sound. At this point, you can diagnose it as infected with rabies.

Once an animal infected with rabies shows symptoms, it will inevitably die within 10 days. It is recommended to inject veterinary rabies vaccine at about three months old and keep the kitten caged regularly, preferably avoiding contact with the outside world. Regular disinfection at home can greatly reduce the incidence of rabies. In the earliest stage of the disease, the saliva contains a large amount of the rabies virus. If you get close to, play with, or are bitten (scratched) by it at this stage, infection is easy. After the early onset, it enters the excitement phase, in which the kitten becomes restless, irritable, cannot eat normally, and exhibits aggressive behavior toward people. Many people bitten by infected animals while nursing wounds usually were bitten at this period. Finally, in the terminal stage, the infected animal instantly experiences respiratory difficulties and severe systemic failure leading to death.

It is noteworthy that a few infected by kittens show a “quiet type,” meaning no obvious excitement behavior, but after biting, they can still infect other organisms with rabies. Initially, they also hide in dark places and avoid people, ignoring the owner's calls. If you reach out to grab it, it will bite. Two days after the onset, the kitten will run around restlessly, will be irritable, tuck its tail between its legs, drooling, and initiate attacks on people. In the late stage, full body paralysis occurs, no food intake, tongue protrudes outside the mouth, with severe salivation. Finally death.