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San Marcos cat tests positive for rabies after biting owner, family dog

Anyone who has had contact with the cat since Saturday, April 21 is urged to call San Marcos Animal Protection at 512-805-2655 immediately.

SAN MARCOS — ***Editor's note: The original press release stated the cat bit its owner on Saturday. Hays County sent an updated press release later Thursday afternoon that stated the cat bit its owner on Sunday.***

SAN MARCOS -- San Marcos Animal Services has issued a rabies alert for the Blanco Gardens Neighborhood after a local cat tested positive for a strain of rabies.

The city said an Animal Protection officer was dispatched to the 1300 block of Conway Drive after the cat's owner and another family pet were both bitten by the feline.

The cat bit its owner and the family dog early Sunday morning, May 6, the city said.

According to the City of San Marcos, the cat was living both indoors and outdoors, and showed progression of symptoms within 24 hours: unusual and erratic behavior, aggression, excessive salivation, vomiting, then death.

The cat died later that Sunday and the owner took the animal to the San Marcos Animal Shelter for rabies testing, where it tested positive for the strain of rabies carried by bats.

The cat's owner went to the emergency room at the Central Texas Medical Center and is undergoing post-exposure treatment. The family's dog has begun a 90-day isolation at a veterinary clinic, according to the city.

Anyone who has had contact with the cat since Saturday, April 21 is urged to call San Marcos Animal Protection at 512-805-2655 immediately.

City ordinance requires all cats and dogs over the age of four months to be registered with the City, and state law requires them to have current rabies vaccinations.

For more information, contact the San Marcos Regional Animal Shelter at 512-805-2655.

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