As the Philippines is one of the ten countries in the world with a high incidence of rabies cases, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) is encouraging local chief executives (LCEs) to actively support the World Rabies Day (WRD) celebration on September 28, 2015 with the theme, “End Rabies Together”.
This year’s celebration, which will be held in conjunction with the observance of the Animal Welfare Week spearheaded by the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI), will be highlighted by a series of activities which include the declaration of rabies-free zones, the conduct of mass dog vaccination, dog walk and pet blessing at the Quezon Memorial Circle (QMC).
In line with this initiative, Incoming DILG Secretary Mel Senen S. Sarmiento is enjoining all local chief executives (LCEs) to mobilize their respective Provincial/City Veterinary Offices and their Municipal Agriculture Offices to support the event by organizing an event celebrating World Rabies Day to create awareness about rabies mitigation and responsible pet ownership, or promoting WRD related events through the distribution of various IEC materials.
Under Republic Act 9482 or “the Anti-Rabies Act of 2007”, LGUs play a vital role in ensuring that all dogs within their jurisdiction are registered, and immunized to ensure they are healthy. They are also urged to allocate funds to augment for the implementation of the National Rabies Prevention and Control Program.
At the same time, local chief executives are also directed to enact local ordinances supporting the rabies control program that will regulate the local treatment of rabies called “tandok.” Also, they must prohibit the trade of dogs for meat and the usage of electrocution and euthanasia procedure.
Rabies is a viral disease usually found in the saliva or tissues from the nervous system of an infected mammal and is transmitted through a bite to another mammal. This epidemic is responsible for an estimated 59,000 human deaths a year, worldwide.
In the Philippines, rabies infection caused by canine bites accounts for 84% or roughly around 300 – 400 deaths per year, as of 2014. One of the reasons for the increasing number of deaths due to rabies infection is the lack of awareness on proper pet vaccination procedures by their owners.
