Cow tests positive for rabies

I ran across this "news flash" and I think it leaves a lot of interesting questions unanswered. I think the Commerce News needs to follow up on this story = "A cow tested positive for rabies after coming into contact with the owner."
Did the owner give the cow rabies? Or vice versa? Can you get rabies if you aren't bitten? What kind of contact was it? Did the cow bite the cowboy or did the cowboy bite the cow?
There is a possibly serious side to this, but the humorous side is far more interesting -- so do tell the whole story -- and don't let the republican candidates hear about it, or we will will surely hear why the county ag department {is there a county ag department?) will cause the price of big macs to rise because of excessive government regulation -- oh hell -- just shoot the cow -- unless it got moved here to California somehow -- we would probably shoot the owner and set up a study on the cow.