Aklan Rabies Situation Is Alarming

By Venus G. Villanueva

OPVET staff member vaccinating dogs to prevent rabies.

The Aklan rabies situation is alarming. Last year alone, some 1,172 Aklanons were bitten by the dogs, of whom three (3) died due to rabies. Early this year, 2007, one (1) also died in Altavas, Aklan, the Provincial Health Office (PHO) in Kalibo reported.
With this rabies alarming situation, the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPVET) Kalibo headed by Dr. Gervase Radislao is aggressively conducting awareness campaign in all municipalities on the danger of rabies. To effect the full implementation of the existing Municipal Rabies Ordinance in the different towns, the OPVET staff members attend the Sangguniang Bayan sessions to campaign for the full implementation of the Rabies Ordinance and gather support for the existing Provincial Ordinance.
The Provincial Ordinance provides for the elimination of stray dogs, compulsory leashing and caging of dogs, castration to regulate dog population and to encourage the people to be responsible pet owners.
According to OPVET-Aklan, millions of pesos are already spent to eradicate rabies, but this problem still exist in Aklan.
Stray dogs, according to OPVET also cause countless fatal motorcycle accidents in the province for years. Besides, these stray animals scavenge for food, disturb and scatter garbage in waste receptacles, have its droppings anywhere and spread skin diseases that maybe transmitted to other dogs and eventually to humans.
This scenario could also affect Aklan’s booming tourism industry, OPVET staff member pointed out.
Currently, Aklan has a total of 55, 312 heads of dogs. OPVET, under its Rabies Prevention and Control program targets to vaccinate 80 percent of these dogs to eliminate rabies and make Aklan a rabies-free province. However, OPVET records show that only 7,671 dogs out of the total population, were vaccinated. This is 13.8 percent out of the 80 percent target as the supply of vaccines is limited. Most municipalities have no budget for dog vaccination program. To attain the 80 percent target, dogs vaccinated should number 44,249.
Besides attending SB sessions in Aklan towns to advocate for the full implementation of the Rabies Ordinance, other anti-rabies activities of OPVET now include conduct of public awareness / information dissemination to schools and municipalities, airing of rabies plugs, display of billboards and distribution of pamphlets / leaflets on the hazards of rabies./MP