Prevent rabies deaths, get rabies shots for pets – DOH

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Health (DOH) is urging pet owners to be responsible enough and make sure their pets have received rabies vaccines.

In a statement on Tuesday, the DOH underscored the importance of prevention in combating rabies as it launched an anti-rabies campaign in time for the Rabies Awareness Month.

“Prevention is key in eliminating the Rabies disease. [Ninety-nine percent] of all rabies transmissions to humans are from dogs, “ Health Secretary Francisco Duque III  said.

“Be a responsible pet owner and vaccinate your pets. This is the most cost-effective strategy to prevent rabies,” he added.

The DOH pointed out that while rabies is a vaccine preventable viral disease, more than 59,000 rabies deaths are reported worldwide each year.

The agency said that rabies is considered as “a public health problem as it is one of the most acutely fatal infection, responsible for the deaths of at least 200 Filipinos each year.”

The DOH cited data from the World Health Organization which showed that 99 percent of all rabies transmissions come from dogs.

The campaign, aimed at strengthening the prevention campaign to avoid unnecessary deaths due to rabies, is in partnership with the Department of Agriculture, Department of the Interior Local Government, local government units as well as the private sector.

The campaign, the DOH added, is also focused on promoting responsible pet ownership and vaccine availability at established Animal Bite Treatment Centers.

“We have made great strides in eliminating rabies particularly in the Visayas region where a number of provinces were declared rabies-free. Let us continue this positive trend and work together towards completely eradicating this deadly disease,” Duque said.

“It is my hope to declare Philippines a rabies-free country by 2030,” he added. / gsg