Rabies and Other Diseases in Rats
WouterWhile rats are notoriously difficult to spot as sick, it’s important to remember that they are capable of transmitting a wide variety of diseases to humans and other animals. They look and act like any other type of rat, and many of these diseases are vague and difficult to distinguish from other conditions. In addition to rabies, rats can transmit diseases like Hantavirus, Tularemia, and fleas. The fleas they carry can also be dangerous because they carry disease-causing pathogens, such as the Plague and Black Death.
While the presence of rabies in rats is a potential health risk, it is not common. In fact, a very small percentage of rats carry rabies and the disease has never been transmitted to humans. Rabies is a disease that can infect any mammal and is spread through bites and scratches. Dogs and cats are the most common mammals to carry rabies, and if a person comes in contact with an infected rat, they are at risk of contracting the disease.
Most rabid rodents are groundhogs and lagomorphs. A spike in reported rabid rodents occurred during the early 2000s, possibly related to an ongoing raccoon rabies epidemic in the Northeast. Then, there was a corresponding decrease in reported rabid groundhogs during 2003. This decrease was accompanied by the geographic expansion of raccoon rabies in the U.S.
