Maharashtra man dies by suicide after dog bite; he thought he would contract rabies

The man had concealed the dog bite incident from his family and had not completed the full course of anti-rabies vaccination.

A 30-year-old bank employee died by suicide in Maharashtra's Thane fearing symptoms of rabies after being bitten by a dog

An accidental death report has been registered in the matter, while further probe is underway. (HT Photo/ Representational)

The deceased, a resident of Chakki Naka in Kalyan, was bitten by a stray dog a few days ago. He had concealed the dog bite incident from his family and had not completed the full course of anti-rabies vaccination, according to an earlier HT report.

The 30-year-old lived with his elderly parents and brother in a flat in Kalyan. He was alone at home at the time of the incident, with his family having travelled to their native place.

Hemant Gurav, senior police inspector of Kolshewadi police station, said his family returned on Sunday night and found him dead upon opening the door of their flat. “We were informed and have registered an FIR for accidental death,” Gurav said.

Deceased was stressed, claimed he had rabies symptoms

Police recovered a suicide note from the scene during the investigation, wherein the deceased revealed that he had been bitten on the leg by a stray dog some time ago.

He wrote that he had not disclosed the incident to anyone in his family to avoid causing them stress, but had allegedly begun experiencing symptoms. This included panic at the sight of water, one of the symptoms associated with advanced rabies. According to police, the deceased had only taken one dose of the anti-rabies vaccine.

In the note, the 30-year-old expressed fears that his condition would worsen, and stated that he did not want his family to witness this suffering. He further wrote that no one should be held responsible for his death.

Rabies is preventable if prompt and complete post-exposure prophylaxis is administered after the dog bite, medical experts confirm. Doctors urge those bitten to immediately wash the wound thoroughly with soap and water and seek authorised medical treatment after any dog bite or scratch.

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