Rabies cases surge by 50% in Cebu City

Utlang identifies stringent impounding, vaccination gaps as possible causes

ANTI RABIES CAMPAIGN. Cebu province and Mandaue City government join hands in conducting an anti-rabies campaign in celebration of the Province Rabies Consciousness Month at the Mandaue City Park.| File photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – At least half of the 170, 000 dogs in Cebu City are yet to be vaccinated.

Dr. Alice Utlang, head of the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries (DVMF), said this was the possible reason for the surge in rabies cases here during the first half of 2024 or from January to June, as compared to the same period last year.

In addition, Utlang said the city’s stringent practices of impounding dogs, including the already vaccinated dogs, are an added factor to the increase in rabies cases here.

READ: Dog rabies cases in Cebu City ‘alarming’; City Vet calls out irresponsible pet owners

Utlang said that vaccinated dogs are immune to the rabies virus.  In the event that they are bitten by a rabid dog, the weaker dog dies.

For the first half of the year, DVMF already logged 13 rabies cases, which almost doubled the seven cases that they recorded during the first half of 2023.

Most of the cases or a total of four were from Brgy. Lahug.

READ: Dog rabies cases in Cebu City ‘alarming’; City Vet calls out irresponsible pet owners

Anti-rabies vaccination

In order to address the increasing number of rabies cases here, Utlang said they are trying to intensify their anti-rabies vaccination campaign.

“Actually ang pag combat sa rabies dili man impoundment of dogs, vaccination gyud na dapat,” she said.

READ: Central Visayas logs 19 suspected rabies-related deaths

She also warned owners of unvaccinated dogs of sanctions that are provided in existing regulations.

Owners of unvaccinated dogs may be fined P2, 000.

If a dog bites someone and is immediately killed, the owner may be asked to pay a fine of P5, 000.

READ: Cebu City brgy chiefs urged: Hold vaccination drives to stop rise of rabies cases

A fine of P5, 000 is also imposed on owners whose pet dog test positive for rabies.

So far, Utlang said that some of the 80 barangays in the city have already vaccinated at least 80 percent of the dogs in their area.  But there are also those with very low vaccination rate.

READ: Cebu City Veterinary will no longer impound healthy stray dogs

“Now, there are barangays that hit the 80 percent population, [mao] nga wala jud silay kaso. It is not how small the barangay or how big the barangay [is] but it is how, kung nabakunahan ba gyud ang mga iro,” she said.

Impounding policy

Meanwhile, Utlang said they are making some adjustments in their policy of impounding dogs to make sure that they only catch the stray dogs and not include the healthy dogs or those that were already vaccinated.

Utlang said that if they continue to impound healthy dogs, who are mistaken for strays, this will undermine their defense mechanism.  This will also allow rabid dogs to spread the virus to other unvaccinated animals.

Also, Utlang said they will continue to require impounded dogs to undergo spay or neuter before these will be released back to its owners.

Neutering male dogs will prevent them from loitering to look for female dogs.

This approach also aligns with guidelines set by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Utlang said they are rigorously implementing the issuance of citation tickets against irresponsible owners of pets who are caught loitering city streets.  This violation is punishable with a fine of P500.