Malaysian Zoo

[lord-of-creation]

Does anyone know what the likelihood of animals in a zoo having rabies are? I'd have thought in a controlled enviroment the chances would be quite slim?

[Timmy35]

What have you been/are gonig to get upto?

[lord-of-creation]

I'm going to be working there for a month later this year. Just weighing up the need to have a rabies injection. £120 is a bit of an expensive do for a peasant like me

[Bill]

What were you bitten by?

[Timmy35]

lord-of-creation said:

I'm going to be working there for a month later this year. Just weighing up the need to have a rabies injection. £120 is a bit of an expensive do for a peasant like me

Yes but for £120 it's probably worth it for the peace of mind?

[becksW]

Find out if the animals themselves are vacc against it. The risk would be from animals outside the zoo, getting in , slim but can't be ruled out.

Plus the tx if you are bitten is pretty aggressive and unpleasant.

[lord-of-creation]

Timmy35 said:

lord-of-creation said:

I'm going to be working there for a month later this year. Just weighing up the need to have a rabies injection. £120 is a bit of an expensive do for a peasant like me

Yes but for £120 it's probably worth it for the peace of mind?

But I've read that the inital vaccination just helps for 24 hours and you have to have another jab if bitten anyway

[5harp3y]

They are really expensive for an extra 24 hours protection, are you going to be 24 hours away from medical assistance at any point?

[3sixty]

I went there a month ago and haven't got rabies. Not much help, but this is PH.

[lord-of-creation]

5harp3y said:

They are really expensive for an extra 24 hours protection, are you going to be 24 hours away from medical assistance at any point?

No definitely not. I could be at one of two zoos, one is 13km outside Kuala Lumpur and the other is in Taiping which will have a decent hospital/s

[lord-of-creation]

Finally got a response from the lead vet at the zoo:

"There will be no rabies vaccination needed prior to the trip. Malaysia is free from rabies and we only have sporadic cases at the Thai-Malaysia border. However, a TB skin test (at least 6 months prior to your placement here) would be advisable as tuberculosis is endemic here in Malaysia and there is a risk of disease transfer between people and the animals (mostly the primates and elephants) although it is more likely that you will be giving the animals TB rather the other way round. Otherwise, there should be no other requirements necessary. I hope this is useful and feel free to contact me if you have any other questions."

£120 bonus

[Eric Mc]

And you believe that?

[3sixty]

lord-of-creation said:

Finally got a response from the lead vet at the zoo:

"There will be no rabies vaccination needed prior to the trip. Malaysia is free from rabies and we only have sporadic cases at the Thai-Malaysia border. However, a TB skin test (at least 6 months prior to your placement here) would be advisable as tuberculosis is endemic here in Malaysia and there is a risk of disease transfer between people and the animals (mostly the primates and elephants) although it is more likely that you will be giving the animals TB rather the other way round. Otherwise, there should be no other requirements necessary. I hope this is useful and feel free to contact me if you have any other questions."

£120 bonus

What about Dengue? Thats quite common in Malaysia

[Jackleman]

I would get the jab done, whilst I was traveling in that part of the world earlier this year a mate of mine was bitten by a dog. He did not have the jab before he went and it cost $1000 to get! Insurance company would not pay up either!

[GTIR]

I got kicked out of a zoo in Thailand.

I had food poisoning and puked over the side of a fence when inside.
Still, the monkeys seemed to enjoy my offerings.

[lord-of-creation]

3sixty said:

lord-of-creation said:

Finally got a response from the lead vet at the zoo:

"There will be no rabies vaccination needed prior to the trip. Malaysia is free from rabies and we only have sporadic cases at the Thai-Malaysia border. However, a TB skin test (at least 6 months prior to your placement here) would be advisable as tuberculosis is endemic here in Malaysia and there is a risk of disease transfer between people and the animals (mostly the primates and elephants) although it is more likely that you will be giving the animals TB rather the other way round. Otherwise, there should be no other requirements necessary. I hope this is useful and feel free to contact me if you have any other questions."

£120 bonus

What about Dengue? Thats quite common in Malaysia

There is no vaccination for dengue