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Life Guide U.S. essentials
English

If a dog or cat bites you or breaks the skin, rinse with soap and running water, alternating, for 15 minutes, and get the vaccine the same day

  • High value
  • Evidence A
  • Buys life
  • Costs a little
  • Takes minutes
  • No willpower

In a real emergency, call 911 first, then read this.

In plain words

Once rabies sets in, the death rate is almost 100%, and rinsing plus the vaccine is the only way. First rinse with soap and running water, alternating, for 15 minutes, and get the vaccine the same day. A bite that goes through the skin, or a licked area where the skin is broken, is a Category III exposure, and you also need a passive immunization product. "It's a pet and has had its shots" does not change what you do: the category is set by the wound, not by where the dog came from.

Cost

Rinsing is free. The full rabies vaccine course costs several hundred CNY. For a Category III exposure you also need a rabies passive immunization product (ready-made antibodies injected directly), which costs several hundred to over a thousand CNY.

What you get

The original text of the 2023 standard from the National Disease Control and Prevention Administration (国家疾控局) and the National Health Commission (国家卫健委): "the death rate of rabies is almost 100%." The handling is "alternately rinse all bite and scratch wounds thoroughly with soap (or another weakly alkaline cleanser) and running water under some pressure for about 15 minutes." A light bite on bare skin or a scratch with no bleeding is a Category II exposure, and the vaccine is needed. A bite that goes through the skin, or a lick on broken skin, is a Category III exposure, and "the wound should be treated, and a rabies passive immunization product and the rabies vaccine given." WHO: about 59,000 people a year die of rabies worldwide, 99% of it spread by dogs

Notes

Don't skip treatment because "it's a pet and has had its shots." The standard looks at how severe the wound is (the exposure category), not at where the dog came from. Don't bandage the wound yourself. The 10-day observation method can only decide whether to stop the shots, not whether to start them. A bite from a wild animal or a bat is handled the same way. If you keep a dog yourself, give it its rabies vaccine on time and keep it on a leash when you go out; see §8.30 (a dog must be on a leash).

Evidence grade
A : Specific numbers from meta-analyses, large cohorts or randomized trials; for law and policy, the statute or official text.
Sources
  1. 国家疾控局综合司、国家卫生健康委办公厅 (2023). 关于印发狂犬病暴露预防处置工作规范（2023 年版）的通知. https://www.ndcpa.gov.cn/jbkzzx/c100014/common/content/content_1706569159854649344.html
  2. WHO. 狂犬病 实况报道. https://www.who.int/zh/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rabies

Mentioned in

Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 13, tip 13. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer