Story by Chan Lilian
DOG owners have been advised to confine their pets at home or keep them on a leash when going out.
“Do not allow your pets to come into contact with stray dogs or any wild animals. This is one effective way to prevent rabies infection of pets,” said Dr Siti Salmiah Tahir, Penang Veterinary ServicesDepartment director.
She added that the vaccine will only arrive in October.
Meanwhile, Penang Health director Datuk Dr. Zailan Adnan said time is of the essence where control of rabies is concerned.
As at press time on Sept 21, another case of rabies was confirmed in Balik Pulau where a stray dog, which had bitten a person, tested positive for rabies.
“We have given the necessary treatment to the victim and will continue to monitor. Normally the incubation period of infection when a person is bitten by a rabid dog is 30-60 days,” Dr Zailan said.
Explaining the treatment, Dr. Zailan said: “It is important to control the population of stray dogs. At the moment, we do not detect any transmission of rabies from dog to human. For the single case that we discovered where a rabies infected dog bit a person, we will give four doses of vaccination to the victim immediately after being bitten and then, three days, six days and 14 days after that.
“The vaccine is supposed to get the victim to produce antibodies. We will monitor the victim for symptoms of rabies and continue to do so for a year.”
On the vaccine, Dr Zailan said: ‘We have ordered immunoglobulin but it takes time to obtain them as they require permit to import. The serum will be administered to those bitten by dogs with rabies. We are working hard to save the human cases of rabies. Note that the impact of rabies infection is usually fatal. So far, no human has been infected by rabies.”
Up to Sep 16, a total of 283 stray dogs have been put to sleep.
So far, 26 cases of dog bites have been reported in Penang.
Six cases were reported within a day as the public is now more aware of the danger of rabies.
Seven of these stray dogs were captured and three of them tested positive for rabies.
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