Worried about cat scratch. Rabies risk?

[Moso]

I was at my friends house today and she had a cat that I was petting. It was being really hyper, but sweet and was purring and seemed to be liking me petting it, but then it scratched me on the hand. Not a bad scratch, but still worrying me. She said she found her cat a couple years ago when it was a stray and got it fixed and its shots, But Im still worried about rabies, even though it is an inside cat. And I saw it licking its paw. How would a rabid cat be acting?

 

[Rinka]

Hi @Moso
I want to say that you really don’t need to worry about house cats or dog or any other domesticated animal that had be taken care of and had it’s vaccinations.
A rabid cat would be aggressive, and I’m not talking about fighting or play fighting, it would have foam around its mouth and be very afraid of water.

 

[janemariesayed]

I was at my friends house today and she had a cat that I was petting. It was being really hyper, but sweet and was purring and seemed to be liking me petting it, but then it scratched me on the hand. Not a bad scratch, but still worrying me. She said she found her cat a couple years ago when it was a stray and got it fixed and its shots, But Im still worried about rabies, even though it is an inside cat. And I saw it licking its paw. How would a rabid cat be acting?

The cat was not rabid Moso. I know that and I wasn't there. Try not to worry yourself too much about rabies. It is very very rare that humans catch it.

The cat would have been acting abnormally. It would have a strange look in its eyes and be aggressive. It would also have foam all around its mouth and be very afraid of water. The cat would have these symptoms within hours of catching it. Not only that but the only way the cat could catch it is from another rabid animal. So the cat would have an injury. Your friend would have known already that the cat was not well.

It may be a good idea if you saw a therapist to talk out this rabies anxiety that you have. There is an underlying reason for it. You are not afraid of rabies, it is something else. You are using rabies as an excuse. The only way you can get tot he bottom of the reason is to talk about it to a therapist who will know how to dig deep and get to the root of the cause.

If the animal has allowed you to pet it, then it definitely does not have rabies.