Ouch! Sousa Bites Carol!

We enjoy taking an early morning walk every day through the streets and neighborhoods of Sousa. We often end up at a great bakery where we pick up some freshly baked bread, cheese and ham that we use for quick lunches - and to feed the missionaries.


On the 5th of January we took a different route for a change as we didn't need a bakery stop that day. As we passed a derelict old house behind decaying walls and gates we heard barking and growling dogs. As we walked past the broken gate, 4 or 5 dogs burst through the gate onto the sidewalk. One particularly mean dog bit Carol on both legs. Fortunately she was wearing fairly heavy pants and socks so only one tooth made it through to the skin, leaving a small puncture wound.

Carol didn't think she had been bitten at all, but when we got home we could see the wound. After conferring with the church physician in São Paulo he said that it would be necessary for Carol to go through a course of rabies vaccinations. So we were off to the hospital to get the treatment. 

After waiting in the emergency room for an hour and a half Carol was seen by a young doctor who said he didn't think she needed the vaccinations and sent us to a nurse to have the wound cleaned and disinfected. I spoke with the senior nurse there and told her our doctor insisted Carol receive the vaccinations. The nurse concurred, countermanded the doctor's orders and Carol got the first of 5 injections she will receive over a period of 4 weeks. The modern injections are very simple and not painful at all, unlike the stories we have heard about the early treatments to prevent rabies.


We returned to the house later that day and found the person that lives there. She is very old - pushing 80 - and has lived there all of her life. She has no family at all and the house is in a state of extreme disrepair. It actually looks abandoned. She assured us that the dogs are not sick, and we don't believe they are. We have learned that this isn't the first person that the dogs have attacked, so we're going to talk to the appropriate authorities next week to see what can be done to prevent further bites to passers by.

We went back later - and let the sleeping dogs lie!

We feel blessed that the incident was not more serious and that modern, effective treatment is available here to assure there won't be complications.

And we'll stay away from that house on future walks, for sure!

Carol at the hospital - all is well!