Golden Retriever Killua was killed and found by his keepers in a sack. (File photo courtesy of Vina Rachelle / Facebook)
MANILA, Philippines — The slaughtered golden retriever in Camarines Sur tested positive for rabies, according to the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS).
PAWS Director Anna Cabrera told INQUIRER.net in a phone interview on Monday that this was based on the test conducted by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) over the weekend.
However, Cabrera noted that several factors may affect the test result.
“While the result of the testing may not be accurate due to the fact that the body had already been buried for five days prior to testing and may have been contaminated from being in an area where many stray dogs have already been slaughtered, PAWS is making this announcement to ensure that any bites or scratches will be reported promptly in the interest of public health and safety,” Cabrera said in a statement.
Cabrera said they also immediately informed the owner, who is now considered at risk for the virus after hugging “the bloodied body of her beloved dog when she found him at a known dog slaughter area.”
The dog named Killua was killed in Barangay Sta Cruz in Bato town on March 17.
A certain Anthony Solares claimed that Killua had supposedly chased his child.
But in CCTV footage posted by Vina Rachelle Arazas – Killua’s owner – on Facebook, Solares was seen hitting Killua as the dog was running around, trying to escape.
The standard protocol for a suspected rabid animal is for it to “be observed for fourteen (14) days or, in case of highly suspected rabies cases, be humanely euthanized with no damage to the head,” according to the BAI’s Manual of Procedure for Rabies.
Cabrera also learned that Solares owned a carinderia, but she clarified to INQUIRER.net that it could not be determined if they were selling dog meat.
But she noted that “Solares owns a carinderia business which sells meat viands near the dog slaughter area.”
Arazas, as well as consumers of stray dogs in the area, should get post-exposure vaccines, said PAWS.
READ: PAWS finds Killua killer not acting on self defense
Rabies is estimated to kill 59,000 people every year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
As of March 2024, the Philippines already has 84 cases of rabies, which is two cases higher than the same period last year, as per the Department of Health (DOH).
The DOH did not mention how many of the rabies victims died, but the WHO noted that the virus is virtually 100 percent fatal.