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20 People May Have Been Exposed After Family Adopts Rabid Kitten

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) - A family in Colorado Springs may have been exposed to rabies after a stray kitten they adopted tested positive for the virus.

The family says they went to a veterinarian for a checkup and vaccinations before taking the cat home. The kitten was then quarantined in the family's bathroom for 10 days as a precaution.

A few days after the quarantine the cat started showing symptoms of rabies.

"As soon as I saw her I knew that there was no going back. She was really out of it, she was hallucinating, swatting at things that weren't there. So we opted to put her down," said Justine Jovel, who adopted the kitten.

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(credit: CBS)

The family was also forced to put down their two dogs and another kitten because of the exposure.

Twenty people who may have been exposed are now being treated with a series of rabies vaccinations.

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