Rabies--How Long Can It Survive in a Dead Host?

[gatrapper]

Last night/this morning a skunk somehow found a way to push some stuff over and get pinned and die near one of my outdoor buildings.  I woke up around 3 am to a definite skunk smell, but figured one stunk up the woods near the house, which happens several times a year.

I found the skunk this morning at 5:30 when I took my dogs out and removed him about 30 minutes ago. I wore thick nitrile gloves and put rubber gauntlets over them.  Didn't want to get any stink on my arms.  I dragged him out with a tater rake and used that to drag him into a pit in my woods.

By the time I removed the skunk I figured 10-12 hours have easily passed. The skunk was probably sitting in the sun for a solid 6 plus hours. Temps this morning were in the low 40's with this afternoon reaching into the low to mid 70s.

This process had me thinking about how long could the rabies virus survive in a dead animal?   For instance, if my dog found the skunk before me or I handled the animal without gloves, would we still be at risk for catching the virus?

[Swamppy]

Rabies will live longer in lower temps however it does not live outside the body very long. Did you dogs have nay direct contact with the skunk?

[gatrapper]

Dogs never came in contact.  I was just curious as to how long it could survive in general.

[Swamppy]

Minutes outside the carcass. 4-72 hrs inside carcass all temperature dependent.

[g8rvet]

Outside of the body the virus typically dies in seconds but the saliva and nervous system tissue harbor the virus and it is considered an exposure if these secretions or tissue comes in contact with mucous membranes or a wound- the virus could have longer survival in secretions or tissue.  So it would be possible for a dog to eat a skunk and be exposed.  I had a client that was scratched on the foot - we later diagnosed the animal as rabid and the owner went through post exposure prophylaxis.

The temperature of the potentially rabid dead animal is key as was mentioned.  It is often hard at higher temps to even diagnose an animal with rabies due to degradation of the tissue, but low temps change everything.  When they are making a diagnosis, they are not looking for the virus, but looking for the changes in the brain caused by the virus.