When my dog was just a wee pup, we took him to the dog park and a pack of dogs chased him down and I had to save him.
Diving into a pack of barking, snapping, dogs isn’t my favorite thing to do but I did it anyway and I didn’t walk away unscathed.
One of the dogs bit my leg and the owner left faster than an intern’s dignity at a cigar club meeting.
So… I was stuck with an interesting proposition: assume the dog had its rabies shots and never got into a fight with a rabid animal afterwards or… go to the ER and get checked out.
By the way, do you know the odds of contracting rabies from a domesticated animal in the U.S.?
Neither do I, but I was told by the doctors in the ER it’s less than 1%.
Thems are good odds.
But… if I did have rabies, I wouldn’t know until I showed symptoms and by then, the illness has a 100% fatality rate.
100% fatal.
100%.
No cure.
Goodnight Irene.
Listen to me now and hear me later. If you ever get bit by a bat, skunk, squirrel or any other wild animal, and you happen to get rabies, you dead my friend.
This is why every doctor in every ER will always recommend the rabies postexposure prophylaxis.
It’s the only way to guarantee you’ll live.
Point?
The percentages and numbers don’t *always* tell you everything you need to know.
This is why people buy insurance. The risk of something bad happening to you in any area of your life is usually pretty low. But if it does happen, it’s usually catastrophic.
So if you think in terms of percentages only when it comes to risk, you might miss the real story which is… what is the result of losing?
Like if you are roller blading, what’s the risk of falling? Let’s say it’s 80% if you’re new to rollerblading. That’s a high risk. But what’s the consequence? You might scrape your knee.
Oh noes!
Now what’s the risk of you getting sick or dying when you’re young? It’s pretty low. But what’s the consequence of a serious illness, disability, or death?
Catastrophic, right?
Anywho, something to think about.