By Alli Witzman, UCHealth

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) issued an alert Friday urging Coloradans who may have been exposed to a rabid puppy at an adoption event in Sheridan, Colorado on July 20 to get medically screened immediately.

According to CDPHE, a rabies-positive puppy was present at the Moms and Mutts Colorado Rescue for Pregnant and Nursing Dogs event in Sheridan, Colorado on July 20.  The rabies-positive puppy was at the event with 11 litter mates. Rabies is transmitted through an animal’s saliva, a scratch or a bite.

“If you were at this event and had contact with the puppies, that qualifies as a potential exposure. You should call CDPHE and undergo an assessment,” according to Dr. Michelle Barron, UCHealth’s senior medical director of infection prevention and control.

Anyone who attended the event and had contact with the puppies is asked to call the state health department’s hotline at 303-692-2700 during business hours, or 303-370-9395 after hours/weekends/holidays to help determine whether post-exposure prophylaxis is needed.

“Rabies is not spread human-to-human,” Barron said. “If you think someone in your house was exposed, get them evaluated. However, nobody else in the house is at risk unless they also had exposure to the puppies at this adoption event.”

Barron said that time between exposure and onset of symptoms can be “somewhere between weeks and months. That’s why rabies is challenging to diagnose.”

Rabies can be deadly if left untreated prior to the onset of symptoms, Barron said. Symptoms can initially present as flu-like symptoms including fevers, headaches, and weakness. As symptoms progress, a person can experience altered mental status, seizures, loss of consciousness or hallucinations.

UCHealth is aware that some Coloradans may seek treatment in UCHealth emergency departments or clinics. Staff and providers are encouraged to take a complete and comprehensive history regarding possible exposure and consult with CDPHE.

According to CDPHE, Colorado has not had a human case of rabies since 1931 and has not had a rabies case in a dog since 2020.

“Most of the rabies cases we see are in skunks and other wildlife,” Barron said. “We don’t often see rabies in our domestic animals because there are high vaccination rates for rabies. This is a good reminder to make sure your pet is up to date with their rabies vaccines.”

For more information about rabies, please go to the CDPHE website.