Dogs were the #1 way for humans to catch rabies for most of human history, which I didn't realize until I read Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus.
The Vampire Bat Link (1911): The very first connection between bats and rabies was made by scientist Antonio Carini in Brazil. He discovered the virus in cattle that had died from a paralyzing sickness after being bitten by vampire bats.
The First Confirmed Bat (1921): Researchers Haupt and Rehaag officially confirmed rabies in a bat captured by a farmer. The farmer witnessed the bat biting a calf.
The United States Discovery (1953): Rabies virus infection in insect-eating (insectivorous) bats was first recognized in the United States in 1953.
You make a good point but your year is off. For the purposes of the article though it should have been more evident. Other animals tend to get it from bats because bats are the primary carriers. They didn't understand that back then but we do now and it's worth talking about.
That wasnt my point. Bats are known incubators for rabies because they are immune to it but still carry it. Dogs find the dead bats and get infected, just like other animals. They see food, they eat it, they get infected. The root cause here is the bats but everyones hyper focused on the dogs for some reason.
Bat populations are large and not practically reachable, so vaccination is impractical. Eradication is undesired because they serve a useful niche in our ecology.
Dogs are the primary way humans get (got? with higher vaccination rates for dogs this has been skewed, like how the most common causes of death have changed as things like antibiotics were developed and various medical interventions for certain cancers and other conditions) infected. Dogs are typically socialized, so vaccination is practical. Dog populations are smaller and generally reachable. Feral dogs can still be a problem, but catch & release with vaccination and sterilization can reduce their population and risk factor over time (similar to what is done with cats).
So if you want the highest impact intervention, between dogs and bats the place to intervene is the dogs since you cannot, practically, intervene with bats (by vaccination or eradication).
We're in a prolonged guerilla conflict in Canada. We are winning but the end is not in sight yet.
In Ontario every year the Ministry of Forestry distributes several million doses of rabies vaccine for wildlife. The goal is to immunize the majority of skunks, foxes, raccoons and the like, particularly in populated areas.
They air drop edible pellets with the live rabies vaccine; they are labeled "do not touch do not eat" because it can vaccinate most susceptible mammals, including humans.
The live adenovirus (engineered to express a rabies protein) is not entirely safe. It won't give you rabies, but it does infect you. For wild animals, it's ok if some small fraction die from it.
They should spread some of these around my town in central NY; we've had rabid animals recently (cat and fox).
The pellets can cause localized infections or rashes to humans. More dangerous to certain groups like small children, pregnant women and people with immune system issues.
The First Confirmed Bat (1921): Researchers Haupt and Rehaag officially confirmed rabies in a bat captured by a farmer. The farmer witnessed the bat biting a calf.
The United States Discovery (1953): Rabies virus infection in insect-eating (insectivorous) bats was first recognized in the United States in 1953.
You make a good point but your year is off. For the purposes of the article though it should have been more evident. Other animals tend to get it from bats because bats are the primary carriers. They didn't understand that back then but we do now and it's worth talking about.
Rabid dogs are typically aggressive and spread the infection on their own.
There have been very few cases of rabid bats in the UK, if any.
Humans rarely get infected by bats.
Bat populations are large and not practically reachable, so vaccination is impractical. Eradication is undesired because they serve a useful niche in our ecology.
Dogs are the primary way humans get (got? with higher vaccination rates for dogs this has been skewed, like how the most common causes of death have changed as things like antibiotics were developed and various medical interventions for certain cancers and other conditions) infected. Dogs are typically socialized, so vaccination is practical. Dog populations are smaller and generally reachable. Feral dogs can still be a problem, but catch & release with vaccination and sterilization can reduce their population and risk factor over time (similar to what is done with cats).
So if you want the highest impact intervention, between dogs and bats the place to intervene is the dogs since you cannot, practically, intervene with bats (by vaccination or eradication).
In Ontario every year the Ministry of Forestry distributes several million doses of rabies vaccine for wildlife. The goal is to immunize the majority of skunks, foxes, raccoons and the like, particularly in populated areas.
They air drop edible pellets with the live rabies vaccine; they are labeled "do not touch do not eat" because it can vaccinate most susceptible mammals, including humans.
They should spread some of these around my town in central NY; we've had rabid animals recently (cat and fox).