Berkley Offers $5 Rabies Vaccinations for Pets

The city of Berkley will hold a rabies vaccination clinic April 13 at the Berkley Public Safety Department.

Residents can get their dogs and cats vaccinated against rabies for $5 and license their pooches for the following prices.

The state of Michigan provides the following answers to frequently asked questions about rabies on its website.

• What is rabies?: Rabies is a viral disease that can infect mammals.  It causes inflammation of the brain. Once symptoms begin, there is no treatment for rabies, and it is always fatal.
• How do you get rabies?: The virus is usually transmitted by the bite of an infected animal. The virus can also be transmitted if saliva from an infected animal gets into an open wound or onto a mucous membrane such as the eyes, nose, or mouth. Inhalation of rabies virus has been known to occur, but only in very special circumstances, such as a research laboratory.
• How do you know if an animal has rabies?: There are 2 forms of rabies illness seen in animals. One is known as the furious form, and animals with this type of rabies can exhibit symptoms such as agitation and increased aggressiveness early on, followed by depression, paralysis, and eventually death. The other type of rabies is called the dumb form, and these animals are lethargic, depressed, and eventually die. ... There is no test of a live animal that can detect the presence of the rabies virus.  In order to determine if an animal has rabies, brain tissue must be examined for the presence of characteristic lesions.
• Is there any treatment for rabies?: There is no treatment for rabies once a person or animal shows signs of the disease, and death is inevitable.

Click here to learn more about rabies on michigan.gov.