Rabies question. See details?

Hello there. Well my housecat dissapeared outside like 3 months ago and suddenly i wake up at night and hear this cat that looks just like mine at the door. So i go out and check it out and im pretty sure she was our cat. Well she comes in and my other cat which used to be with her starts fighting and everything. Well the runaway cat is now outside. My question is this. After the cats fought, the non runaway who lives with us still stratched me barely. Didnt even draw blood but stung just a lil when i put alcohol on it. The runaway cat was real friendly, overly friendly but it could of been cause she missed me soo much. Her mouth wasnt foamy or drooling. She sometimes hiss at random times but it could be from the before mentioned fight. She ate food when she came in but didnt drink the water. But she didnt seem scared of the water when she went by it. I just want to know how likely you think it is that I caught rabies if the cat has it? How likely is it that my other cat got it?

If they both had there shots very unlikely I lost one of my cats same kinda of story and it took a couple days for the other one to warm back up to the lost one again. I think he liked being top cat alone.

A rabid animal's "fear" of water is a myth. I experienced a situation very similar to yours a couple of years ago. I spent a long time in the doctor's office and on the phone with the regional DHEC director. I did not have to get "rabies shots."

And I know this sounds incredibly cold, but if your cat has rabies, it will be dead soon. Two weeks, maximum. The rabies vaccine will boosts your cat's chances of being healthy if he was up-to-date on his shots. However, if your cat was not vaccinated for rabies, it is too late for that. If you report that your pet was attacked by an animal it will have to remain under quarantine according to your state laws.

If you/animal control catch the wild kitty and it is positive for rabies, your cat will definitely be under quarantine. My state's law for a positive rabies attack on an unvaccinized animal is six months isolation. However these laws vary from state to state.

In addition to aggressive behavior, foaming, etc., be on the look out for your pet acting "dumb:" like walking into walls etc. This aspect of rabies is not as well known as the "mad" symptoms.

However, in the unfortunate chance that your cat actually did contract rabies from the attack, you are putting yourself and your family (including any other pets) at high risk.

If your cat is not up on it's shots then you must bring it inside and quarantine it in a bathroom (or other small room). Monitor it for signs of illness for a few weeks. If it gets sick or dies then go to the emergency room and get the shots. Cats die faster from rabies then people do because they are smaller, but if you wait to long and it turns out you have it then their is a window of time in which you need the shot or you will die. A boy just recently died here from rabies because he got bitten by a bat in a movie theater. You do not want to mess with rabies.

Take the returned runaway to the vet for testing...even if she had all of her shots prior to taking off.

You can't be too safe.

There are other diseases that she could have been exposed to that won't hurt you but could be fatal to your other cat. Until you get her tested, keep the cats separated where they have no contact with each other.

It would be a good idea to have your other cat re-vaccinated as well.

If both of your cats test negative, then there is no risk to you.

If either one of the cats tests positive, then they will be quarrantined (probably at a shelter) or euthanzied (it depends on what they test positive for).

EMT