Dog owner who "didn't believe in rabies" gets citation in Colorado

The Summit County Sheriff's Office reports that a woman received a citation last week after her unvaccinated dog was picked up by authorities as a stray.

When the woman went to pick up her dog from the local animal shelter after it was found unattended, she was informed that the dog was not licensed and wasn't up-to-date on its rabies vaccines.

At that point, the dog owner told Animal Control that "she didn't believe in rabies and therefore would not vaccinate her."

Authorities let the woman know that her dog is required to be vaccinated several times, ultimately giving the owner a citation for failure to vaccinate and failure to license her dog.

Rabies is an incurable virus that is very much-so real. It attacks the brain and spinal cord, and all mammals, including dogs and humans are able to catch rabies, per WedMD.

Most commonly, rabies is passed along when an infected animal bites another animal or a person, transferring the virus via saliva. In most cases involving dogs, rabies is contracted from a run-in with an infected wild animal.

One reason rabies is not typically passed from dog to dog is due to the requirement of the rabies vaccine, which is extremely effective. Dogs generally get their first rabies vaccine between 14 and 16 weeks of age, needing a booster every one to three years after that depending on state law and the type of booster that's used.

Even still, any pet owner who believes their animal may have had an encounter with a rabid mammal should contact their vet immediately.