Key Clinical Message These two cases highlight some of the many challenges encountered when handling dog bite and rabies exposure. They also provide examples of the many barriers, and while highlighting only two individuals, they are likely representative of large numbers of the over 59 000 people that die every year from this preventable disease.

Understanding the socioecology of domestic dog populations is essential for effective disease control, especially canine rabies. In Morocco, since 1986, the control efforts and plans put in place by the government have failed to eradicate this disease; this is because the management of the canine population was not taken into account during the establishment of these plans. It is against the background that this study was designed to estimate the dog population and determine its socioecological characteristics, as well as investigate the attitude of the inhabitants towards the dogs. A stratified random sampling was conducted using a structured questionnaire from May to December 2016. A total of 1931 households were interviewed, comprising 27.4% in urban areas and 72.6% in rural areas. A total of 3719 dogs were counted alongside a human population of 11302 for a dog : human ratio of 1 : 2.42 in rural areas and 1 : 46.58 in urban areas. The majority of dogs (92%) in rural areas were not vaccinated against rabies. In urban areas, about 88.5% were vaccinated against rabies. In addition, 78.5% of dogs in rural areas were free roaming, with more than 53% of births being abandoned by their owners, resulting in a large stray and feral dog population and increasing the potential for continued transmission of rabies virus. There was strong association between breed and rabies vaccination (p<0.05) and confinement with body condition score.

Key Clinical MessageThis manuscript aims at creating awareness especially to livestock farmers and veterinarians/clinicians that rabies occurs in livestock species. Furthermore, clinicians should note that the viral load in dog bite cases by rabid dog can be reduced by vigorous washing and disinfection which may ultimately delay the clinical manifestation of rabies.

B ats are vital to many ecosystems and provide benefits to humans (1). However, under certain circumstances, bats may pose a risk to human health, as they host several zoonotic pathogens (2). Humans should therefore avoid bat contact unless appropriate precautions are taken. Among the most concerning batborne pathogens are viruses within the genus Lyssavirus. Previously unimmunized humans exposed to any of the >16 currently recognized and putative lyssaviruses (typically through a bite from an infected animal) will have 1 of 3 outcomes. First is a complete lack of any lyssavirus infection, characterized by the absence of both illness and lyssavirus-neutralizing antibody production. Second is a productive lyssavirus infection, characterized by a fatal encephalitis known as rabies (3). A human with rabies may produce lyssavirus-neutralizing antibodies in the end stages of illness as the disease progresses, although this response is typically inadequate for viral clearance (4). Third is an abortive lyssavirus infection (sometimes termed an exposure) characterized by the absence of frank encephalitis but with production of lyssavirus-neutralizing antibodies. Although

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