In endemic areas, stray cats should be always considered at exposure risk and handling and nursing of rescued animals should be considered dangerous even if they are asymptomatic.
Risk exposure is generally almost nil in breeding catteries because usually pedigree cats are kept strictly indoors, but their vaccination is under local or state regulation.
FIV-positive cats should be kept confined indoors to avoid transmission to other cats, to protect them from other infections and to slower the progression of FIV infection itself. This is an efficient preventive measure for rabies in areas at risk, but national or regional legislation should be adhered to. In outdoor cats with risk of exposure to rabies, vaccination is strongly advised.
In vaccination studies it was demonstrated that FeLV-infected cats may not be able to mount adequate immune response to some rabies vaccines [Franchini 1990]. FeLVinfected cats should be confined strictly indoors to prevent spread to other cats in the neighbourhood: if cats are allowed to go outside in area at risk for rabies, more frequent vaccination may need to be considered (e.g. every 6 months).
There is general agreement that cats with acute illness should not be vaccinated but cats with chronic illness such as renal disease, diabetes mellitus or hyperthyroidism should be vaccinated regularly if they are at risk of exposure.
In cats receiving corticosteroids, every vaccination should be considered carefully. Depending on dosage and duration of treatment, corticosteroids may cause functional suppression of immune responses, particularly cell-mediated immune responses, but studies exploring rabies vaccine efficacy in cats receiving corticosteroids are lacking. In dogs, corticosteroids do not appear to result in ineffective immunizations if given for short periods of time at low to moderate doses [Nara et al, 1979]. However, concurrent use of corticosteroids at the time of vaccination should be avoided if practical.