Figure 1.

The ferret received rabies virus in the right gastrocnemius muscle (day 0) and remained healthy for 80 d. Initial clinical signs of rabies (hindlimb paralysis) were observed on day 81 after inoculation. The ferret survived rabies with paralytic sequelae for 100 d after onset, until the end of the observation period (day 181). Serum collected on day 77 after inoculation and prior was negative for rabies virus-neutralizing antibodies (VNA). On day 82 after inoculation, rabies virus-neutralizing antibodies were detected in serum (0.4 IU/mL), and the ferret remained seropositive for the duration of the observation period until euthanasia. Rabies virus-neutralizing antibodies were detected in cerebrospinal fluid collected on day 181 (24.0 IU/mL).