{"id":44083,"date":"2024-12-03T07:00:35","date_gmt":"2024-12-03T05:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/"},"modified":"2025-03-19T23:12:13","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T21:12:13","slug":"what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/","title":{"rendered":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Authorities have issued a rabies warning for Cape fur seals along South Africa\u2019s coastline. <\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Rabies, a deadly disease, has been confirmed in marine mammals for the first time and poses risks to humans and pets. <\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Beachgoers are urged to maintain a safe distance and seek medical help immediately if exposed to potentially infected animals.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>As travellers and locals are gearing up for the festive season and beach holidays, authorities have issued a rabies warning for visitors to stay away from Cape Fur seals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a statement last week, the Department of Agriculture, Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment in conjunction with the Department of Health and National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) warned visitors of the high risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cAs the holidays approach, the public and travellers are warned about rabies in dogs, Cape fur seals and other animals in South Africa,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>READ |&nbsp;<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news24.com\/news24\/community-newspaper\/peoples-post\/experts-link-cape-fur-seal-aggression-to-rabies-in-western-cape-20240807\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Experts link Cape Fur Seal aggression to rabies in Western Cape<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cCollectively, the departments wish to alert members of the public about high risk rabies areas in South Africa where the disease occurs in dogs, Cape fur seals and other animals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-deadly\">Deadly<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Multiple reports of attacks on humans by aggressive Cape fur seals have been reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These attacks have occurred along the Cape coastline in the past few months. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThis is the first incidence of rabies being confirmed in a marine mammal population. The public is urged to take note of this new risk of rabies in Cape fur seals and keep a respectful distance from these animals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Rabies is a deadly viral disease that affects all mammals and can be spread from animals to humans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>READ |&nbsp;<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.news24.com\/news24\/community-newspaper\/tygerburger\/experts-tackle-cape-fur-seal-aggression-and-rabies-outbreak-20240814-3\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>Experts tackle Cape fur seal aggression and rabies outbreak<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Authorities warned that the rabies virus is transmitted in the saliva of infected animals through bites, scratches and licks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cRabies affects the brain and is fatal once a person or animal shows clinical signs, but it can be prevented through vaccination of animals and immediate medical attention in people exposed to an infected animal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>While there have been no reported human deaths reported in Cape Town this year, there have been human deaths attributed to rabies from dogs in KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape, Limpopo and North West.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, in a tragic case last week, a dog in Kommetjie was allegedly euthanised after a brutal attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dog-attack\">Dog attack<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In a social media post last week, a dog walker issued a warning to fellow residents after her dog was attacked at a beach in Kommetjie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cDear dog owners, I took my three dogs for a special walk on Forsythe beach as one of them is terminally ill,\u201d the post read. \u201cI let them run ahead of me to take their last photos together and a huge seal came straight out of the waves and attacked them viciously, they fought back with everything they had and I tried to scream and hit them off to get them away from the seal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tragically, one of the dogs sustained bite wounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSadly my little Daisy thought she was going to protect the other two from the seal and she was bitten and had to be euthanised soon after. If your dog is bitten by a seal, euthanasia is the only option other than other lengthy quarantine and rabies vaccines controlled by the state vet.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The public is urged to stay away from stray animals and not to touch animals they don\u2019t know. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div contenteditable=\"false\" data-embed24=\"InfoBlock\" data-pos=\"middle\" id=\"embed_145b2a84\">\n<div class=\"heading\">What are the signs that an animal may have rabies?<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<ul>\n<li>They may drool a lot, become paralysed, are unable to swallow, continuously vocalise (barking, whining, howling, etc.), and become aggressive, or they may just appear weak and in a comatose state.<\/li>\n<li>Any mammal can become infected with rabies, including dogs, cats, livestock, jackals, foxes, mongooses, Cape fur seals, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div contenteditable=\"false\" data-embed24=\"InfoBlock\" data-pos=\"middle\" id=\"embed_4e135dc5\">\n<div class=\"heading\">Where does rabies occur in South Africa?<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<ul>\n<li>Rabies in Cape fur seals are found and known to travel along the coastline of the Northern Cape, Western Cape and Eastern Cape (up to Algoa Bay).<\/li>\n<li>What to do if I am bitten or scratched by a rabid animal?<\/li>\n<li>If a person is bitten, scratched, or licked by an animal suspected to have rabies, they must wash the wound well with soap and running water and immediately seek treatment at the nearest clinic or hospital to prevent infection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As travellers and locals are gearing up for the festive season and beach holidays, authorities have issued a rabies warning for visitors to stay away from Cape Fur seals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":44085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_crsspst_to_novanewscoza":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozabloemnewsexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozacityvision":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozadistrictmailhelderberg":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaeikestadnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozahermanustimes":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakomani-karoo":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakougaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozamthathaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozanoordkaapbulletin":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapaarlpost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaswartlandgazette":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozatygerburger":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaudexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavistanews":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavrystaatkroon":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweskusnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweslander":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaworcesterstandard":false,"_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"e92bcc4e-50f4-4468-a2ff-8b350cbddb7b","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"Natasha Bezuidenhout","background_color":"","block_editor":"","byline":"","cmplz_hide_cookiebanner":"","competition_end_date":"","contact_advertise_email":"","contact_advertise_phone":"","contact_editorial_email":"","contact_general_email":"","contact_general_phone":"","contact_office_hours":"","contact_physical_address":"","enabled":"","featured_image_custom_caption":"","featured_video_url":"","fields":"","font_body":"","font_header":"","frequency":"","headline":"","hide_border":"","icon":"","is_wp_suggestion":"","issuu_download_url":"","issuu_embed_url":"","language_version_url":"","large_border":"","name":"","nm_contact_name":"","nm_contact_number":"","nm_date_lost":"","no_overlay_background":"","node-url":"","obituary_born_date":"","obituary_died_date":"","obituary_memoriam_text":"","origin":"","overlay_color":"","overlay_opacity":"","overlay_size":"","placement":"","plural_label":"","post_author":"","post_id":"","post_language":"en","secret-key":"","sponsored_utm_campaign":"","sponsored_utm_content":"","sponsored_utm_medium":"","sponsored_utm_source":"","sponsored_utm_term":"","start_date":"","utm_suppression":"","video_embed_url":"","wp_pattern_sync_status":"","data_version":[],"enclosure":[],"pongrass_image":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"scaip_prevent_shortcode_addition":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"publication":[],"class_list":["post-44083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.8 (Yoast SEO v27.8) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals | People&#039;s Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As travellers and locals are gearing up for the festive season and beach holidays, authorities have issued a rabies warning for visitors to stay away from Cape Fur seals.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"People&#039;s Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PeoplesPostNewsPaper\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1282\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"857\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Natasha Bezuidenhout\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@thepeoplespost\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@thepeoplespost\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"People&#039;s Post\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"People's Post\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a55ab3f8723ad7eb7c816b50d6f060e0\"},\"headline\":\"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":731,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#respond\"]}],\"copyrightYear\":\"2024\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/\",\"name\":\"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals | People&#039;s Post\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg\",\"width\":1282,\"height\":857,\"caption\":\"According to authorities, rabies appears to be well-established in the Cape Fur Seal population and should be considered endemic. PHOTO: Supplied\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"News\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/\",\"name\":\"People's Post\",\"description\":\"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Peoples Post\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/peoples-post-site-icon.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/peoples-post-site-icon.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Peoples Post\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/PeoplesPostNewsPaper\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/thepeoplespost\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/peoplespostnewspaper\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/@peoplespostnewsCPT\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/a55ab3f8723ad7eb7c816b50d6f060e0\",\"name\":\"People's Post\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-ZA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"People's Post\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/novanews.co.za\\\/peoplespost\\\/author\\\/peoplespost\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals | People&#039;s Post","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals","og_description":"As travellers and locals are gearing up for the festive season and beach holidays, authorities have issued a rabies warning for visitors to stay away from Cape Fur seals.","og_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/","og_site_name":"People&#039;s Post","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PeoplesPostNewsPaper","article_published_time":"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1282,"height":857,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Natasha Bezuidenhout","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@thepeoplespost","twitter_site":"@thepeoplespost","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"People's Post","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/"},"author":{"name":"People's Post","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#\/schema\/person\/a55ab3f8723ad7eb7c816b50d6f060e0"},"headline":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals","datePublished":"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/"},"wordCount":731,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#respond"]}],"copyrightYear":"2024","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/","name":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals | People&#039;s Post","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","datePublished":"2024-12-03T05:00:35+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-19T21:12:13+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-ZA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","width":1282,"height":857,"caption":"According to authorities, rabies appears to be well-established in the Cape Fur Seal population and should be considered endemic. PHOTO: Supplied"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/what-you-need-to-know-about-the-rabies-risk-in-cape-fur-seals-20241203\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"News","item":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"What you need to know about the rabies risk in Cape fur seals"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#website","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/","name":"People's Post","description":"To Inform, Engage and Empower Local Communities","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-ZA"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#organization","name":"Peoples Post","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/peoples-post-site-icon.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/peoples-post-site-icon.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Peoples Post"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/PeoplesPostNewsPaper","https:\/\/x.com\/thepeoplespost","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/peoplespostnewspaper\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@peoplespostnewsCPT"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/#\/schema\/person\/a55ab3f8723ad7eb7c816b50d6f060e0","name":"People's Post","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-ZA","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ea284cb64e6d80623a001a22682bdd8e89e02e917c1f92b662fe747122e799b?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"People's Post"},"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/author\/peoplespost\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":294737,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/rabies-alert-spca-warns-against-petting-cape-town-seals\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":0},"title":"Rabies alert: SPCA warns against petting Cape Town seals","author":"Keanan Harmse","date":"19 November 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"CAPE TOWN-The Cape of Good Hope Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) urges the public to be cautious and avoid petting seals.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"SPCA","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/sas.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":295299,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/arrests-made-for-feeding-seals-at-hout-bay-harbour\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":1},"title":"Arrests made for feeding seals at Hout Bay Harbour","author":"People's Post","date":"27 November 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Authorities warn the public to avoid seals after four arrests at Hout Bay Harbour, following rising rabies cases among Cape Fur Seals","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/WhatsApp-Image-2025-11-27-at-2.27.44-PM.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/WhatsApp-Image-2025-11-27-at-2.27.44-PM.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/WhatsApp-Image-2025-11-27-at-2.27.44-PM.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/WhatsApp-Image-2025-11-27-at-2.27.44-PM.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45265,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/experts-link-cape-fur-seal-aggression-to-rabies-in-western-cape-20240807\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":2},"title":"Experts link Cape Fur Seal aggression to rabies in Western Cape","author":"People's Post","date":"7 August 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"A scientific workshop, to determine the cause of unusual and unprovoked Cape Fur Seal bites and aggression in the Western Cape, found rabies to be considered endemic and well-established in the seal population.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/6650385a780e439ca9cae91708756341.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45191,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/rabies-confirmed-in-cape-fur-seals-city-and-partners-explore-management-solutions-20240814\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":3},"title":"Rabies confirmed in Cape fur seals: City and partners explore management solutions","author":"People's Post","date":"14 August 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"A workshop involving the City of Cape Town, DFFE, and other organisations addressed the rising cases of Cape fur seal bites, now linked to rabies.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/28a1d4780dc446a8974dbcfdef2c0841.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/28a1d4780dc446a8974dbcfdef2c0841.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/28a1d4780dc446a8974dbcfdef2c0841.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/28a1d4780dc446a8974dbcfdef2c0841.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":45971,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/cape-town-residents-on-high-alert-after-rabies-case-leads-to-euthanasia-of-dogs-20240604\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":4},"title":"Cape Town residents on high alert after rabies case leads to euthanasia of dogs","author":"People's Post","date":"4 June 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"City officials are urging Deep South residents to be on high alert after a confirmed case of rabies led to the euthanasia of two dogs in Capri last week.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/742af2814039431d8e65262e9a121600.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/742af2814039431d8e65262e9a121600.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/742af2814039431d8e65262e9a121600.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/742af2814039431d8e65262e9a121600.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/742af2814039431d8e65262e9a121600.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":47558,"url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/law-enforcement-efforts-sharpened-to-clampdown-on-abuse-and-exploitation-of-seals-on-cape-shores-20231219\/","url_meta":{"origin":44083,"position":5},"title":"Law enforcement efforts sharpened to clampdown on abuse and exploitation of seals on Cape shores","author":"People's Post","date":"19 December 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"However amazing the scope in travelling guides\/blogs\/articles to the Mother City might be, visitors to Hout Bay don\u2019t seem to have a one-search Google result warning tourists to protect our local Cape fur(ry) friends.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"News","link":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/7137862a876d47ed8897bbbadbef882c.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"People&#039;s Post","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44083"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=44083"},{"taxonomy":"publication","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/novanews.co.za\/peoplespost\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/publication?post=44083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}