Bali - rabies jab or not?

JennyP

Anyone got any advice on whether I really need a rabies jab for Bali. I've spoken to a nurse and it's recommended but not essential according to her. The internet is full of stories about rabies in Bali in 2009 and I know there's been several deaths, but these all seemed to be people who had a bite and left it untreated for several months.

I'm planning to go to Ubud and since I'll be travelling alone, I'm not intending to wander around at night much - I'll probably just eat in the hotel and have a cocktail or two. I'm not intending to go in Monkey Forest either as I don't fancy getting bitten by monkeys (although apparently the rabies is confined to Bali's dogs!)

The alternative is not to risk Bali at all - I'm on a business trip to Kuala Lumpur and rather than flying straight home, would like to go somewhere for a few days. It should be cheap (the week's work in KL is my only work at the moment!) and somewhere safe for a single woman. I like wildlife and jungles and perhaps somewhere to swim and relax. I chose Ubud because a friend goes there alot and says I'll be safe, I've found a good hotel that's well-priced and cheap flights from KL and I've read Eat Pray Love.

I don't want to go to Thailand or Cambodia as I've been there already!

Pollycat

JennyP
This is the public version of the website that my practice nurse uses:

http://www.fitfortravel.scot.nhs.uk/destinations/asia-(east)/indonesia/bali.aspx#ImmunisationHeading

It says that rabies vaccination is advised for those going to risk areas that will be remote from a reliable source of vaccine.
It also mentions that urgent medical advice should be sought after any animal bite - so the stories you've read about people dying after leaving bites untreated for several months :eek: are understandable.

I've been to Bali quite a few times and never had rabies vaccination.

The Monkey Forest near Ubud is lovely, there's some fab bits with statues that are right out of Indiana Jones.

JennyP

Thank you.
Tripadvisor is FULL of stories of people getting bitten in the Monkey Forest!
I don't really know what to do ... my friend that goes went in December and didn't have the jab. I don't really want the jab for any other reason than this trip - it's £120. I could simply explore Malaysia a bit on my own after the trip rather than going to Bali but I'm not sure where I'd go or what I'd do there.
I do fancy the Taman Negara - but it doesn't seem like other places I've been where it's easy to book a 4 or 5 day tour there.... perhaps I'm missing something.

Pollycat

JennyP wrote: »

Thank you.
Tripadvisor is FULL of stories of people getting bitten in the Monkey Forest!
I don't really know what to do ... my friend that goes went in December and didn't have the jab. I don't really want the jab for any other reason than this trip - it's £120. I could simply explore Malaysia a bit on my own after the trip rather than going to Bali but I'm not sure where I'd go or what I'd do there.
I do fancy the Taman Negara - but it doesn't seem like other places I've been where it's easy to book a 4 or 5 day tour there.... perhaps I'm missing something.

OK, people might get bitten in the Monkey Forest - but is that by rabid dogs or monkeys (who don't carry rabies)?

WE didn't get bitten in the Monkey Forest because we didn't encourage the monkeys, in fact we gave them a wide berth.
The people writing on TA who DID get bit, were they feeding the monkeys at the time?
I'd guess they probably were.

Whether to have the vaccination or not?
Whether to miss out on a lovely country like Bali or not because you don't want a vaccination?

It's a decision only you can make.

Incapuppy

To the OP: I think you are at a considerably higher risk at being involved in a traffic accident in your hometown than you are of being bitten by a rabid dog or monkey in Bali.

I travelled quite a bit in Bali last September and didn't see many stray dogs at all compared to other countries. In the event that an animal in a tourist area was displaying symptoms of the disease I should think that it would be destroyed fairly quickly anyway as Bali is so heavily reliant on tourism that they would not wish to discourage visitors . Use common sense at other times in regards to wild animals, eg: the monkey forest just as Pollycat says.

If the worst came to the absolute worst., post-exposure jabs should be available in Denpasar. I would happily travel to Bali again tomorrow without an anti-rabies jab, but again, as Pollycat says, it is how the individual perceives any given risk - only you can decide what is right for you.

As an aside, I trust you have sorted out anti-malarials for your trip?

JennyP

Thank you - I am probably just being over-cautious!
I haven't got anti-malarials - the nurse said they weren't necessary for Ubud.

Mr_Lahey

JennyP wrote: »

Thank you - I am probably just being over-cautious!
I haven't got anti-malarials - the nurse said they weren't necessary for Ubud.

The nurse gave me some fantastic advice about anti malarials "There are a billion mosquito's, but it takes only one to give you malaria"

JennyP

But anti-malarials are still drugs and it's never worth putting something unnecessary in your system. If a region doesn't have malaria, it's pointless taking anti-malarials.

Pollycat

Have you looked at the link I gave you earlier?

It has a malarial map which tells whether an area has little/no risk.

I personally don't take what my GP surgery tells me as gospel.
I do the research myself so I can discuss any 'recommended' vaccinations/malaria prevention with some degree of knowledge.

JennyP

It wasn't.... it was a specialist travel nurse from work who does risk assessments for our work trips...
But to get back to the original thread, thank you for all the malaria advice, but it isn't needed. I've been to lots of malarial places but it's RABIES that I'm worried about!

Rosie75

Are there insurance implications here, does anyone know? If you have consulted your doctor / nurse and been recommended a jab (rather than being told it's "required" or "essential"), but then decide not to have it, I can imagine that the insurance company wouldn't pay out for treatment if you then contracted that particular disease.