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What to do if…
an unfamiliar animal bites you and the skin is broken

Produced and maintained by PanicStation.org Published: Last reviewed: Editorial policy USA guide

Short answer

Move away from the animal, wash the wound thoroughly with soap and running water for 15 minutes if possible, cover it, and seek medical care right away. An unfamiliar-animal bite that breaks the skin needs assessment for infection, tetanus care, and possible rabies prevention.

Do not do these things

  • Do not wait for symptoms before asking about rabies risk.
  • Do not chase, corner, or handle the animal.
  • Do not try to close the wound yourself before it has been assessed.
  • Do not delay washing while looking for special supplies.

What to do now

  1. Get to a safer pause. Move away from the animal. Wash the wound somewhere safe without going back near the animal.
  2. Wash the wound now. Use plenty of soap and running water for 15 minutes if possible. If you cannot manage the full 15 minutes, wash as thoroughly as you can. If available, you can use a povidone-iodine solution after washing, but do not delay washing to find it.
  3. Control bleeding and cover the wound. Apply firm pressure with a clean cloth or bandage. When the bleeding is controlled, cover the wound with a clean dressing.
  4. Seek medical care right away. Go to an emergency department or call 911 for serious bleeding that will not stop. Seek prompt assessment for a deep or large wound, exposed muscle or bone, severe pain, numbness, weakness, reduced movement, or a bite on the head, face, neck, hand, fingers, or feet. Otherwise, contact urgent care or your clinician right away.
  5. Ask for a rabies-risk assessment. Tell the clinician that an unfamiliar animal broke your skin. Rabies prevention decisions depend on the exposure and should be made promptly with a healthcare or public-health professional. If the clinician is not arranging this, contact your local or state health department. An official directory is listed below.
  6. Note the details from a safe place. Write down the time, location, animal type, appearance, unusual behaviour, and whether an owner can be identified. If the animal has an owner and you can do so safely, ask for the animal’s rabies vaccination information. Take a wound photo if useful. Do not go closer to the animal for a photo.
  7. Contact animal control when relevant. After washing the wound and arranging medical care, contact animal control or local police if the animal was stray, wild, unknown, or behaving oddly. Tell them where the animal was last seen. Do not try to catch it yourself.
  8. Mention any bat contact clearly. If a bat was involved, tell the clinician immediately, even if the wound looks tiny. If a bat is already safely contained, do not release it until animal control or public health advises what to do.
  9. Be ready for tetanus questions. Tell the clinician when you last had a tetanus vaccine, if you know. The clinician will decide whether a vaccine or tetanus immune globulin is needed based on the wound and your vaccination history.

What can wait

  • You do not need to identify the animal perfectly before seeking care.
  • You do not need to decide now whether to make any broader complaint or claim.
  • You do not need to work out the rabies or tetanus treatment yourself. A clinician and, where needed, public health can assess that.

Important reassurance

You do not need to solve everything at once. The useful first steps are clear: get away from the animal, wash the wound, cover it, seek medical care, and make sure rabies and tetanus risk are assessed.

Scope note

These are first steps for the hours after a bite. Later decisions, including wound follow-up, infection treatment, vaccination, and any rabies post-exposure treatment, may need help from a clinician or public-health professional.

Important note

This is general information, not medical diagnosis or a substitute for professional care. Seek urgent medical attention if bleeding will not stop, redness or swelling is spreading, pain is increasing, pus or red streaks appear, you develop fever, you have numbness or weakness, or movement becomes difficult.

Additional Resources

Closely connected guides that may be useful during the same situation or its immediate aftermath.

About this guide

This guide was produced and is maintained by PanicStation.org using its published editorial process. Official and specialist sources are checked where relevant, and AI-assisted tools may be used for drafting, organisation, and consistency checks. The site operator remains responsible for publication, revision, and removal decisions.

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