Rabies is a disease caused by a germ in the saliva of a rabid animal including dogs. The germs enter the body through a wound made when a rabid animal bites another animal or person. The virus may also get into the body through open cuts or wounds.

The good news is that rabies in humans and pets can be prevented by a vaccine. Massachusetts Law requires dog owners to have their dogs vaccinated for the prevention of rabies. For people who are bitten or scratched by a rabid animal, prompt treatment will protect the person from getting rabies.

The Board of Health for the Town of Foxborough holds a rabies clinic in April of each year. Details are advertised on our website and typically on social media.

You can't tell if an animal has rabies. When an animal is sick with rabies, it may behave strangely. But a rabid animal may also appear healthy or even tame. The only way to tell if an animal has rabies is by testing it in a laboratory, or for some pets, by quarantine to see if rabies develops. 

RABIES NEVER APPEARS AS SUDDEN CONVULSIONS OR FITS.

Do not put the dog down. Confine the dog and call a veterinarian. The dog should be kept under observation. If it remains well, there is no danger of rabies to an animal or person bitten; if it has rabies, definite symptoms will occur within the two-week period of restraint that is required. If the dog is killed at once, you may never know whether or not it was rabid.