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| Co-ordinators of the Worldwide Veterinary Service give a demonstration on vaccinating a dog on the eve of the launch of Mission Rabies in Bhubaneswar on Sunday. Picture by Ashwinee Pati |
Bhubaneswar, Sept. 15: Around 6,000 stay dogs in the city will be vaccinated against rabies over the next 11 days starting tomorrow under the “Mission Rabies” programme.
Worldwide Veterinary Services (WVS) of the UK and India and Dogs Trust, touted to be UK’s largest dog welfare society, will fund the programme. The city-based People For Animals (PFA) will extend logistical support.
Senior veterinary director of WVS-UK Dagmar Mayer said: “We have chosen Bhubaneswar as the cases of dog bite here are quite high as compared to other cities. About 120 to 150 cases are reported in the city every day.”
PFA secretary Amulya Nayak said: “The vaccination programme will start from tomorrow in 30 wards of the city and continue till September 26. If the programme turns out to be successful, it will continue for three more years.”
Today, the organisation also conducted a live demonstration on catching stray dogs using a five-feet net and vaccinating them. According to a survey, nearly 20,000 dogs live on the city roads. “The dogs with rabies become aggressive and this nature causes a lot of road accidents. Once they get vaccinated, a change in their behaviour can be noticed,” an official said.
PFA advisor Prakash Mohapatra said: “Once a dog is vaccinated, paint would be sprayed on its body and this would serve as an identification mark. We will also vaccinate pet dogs on request.”
WVS officials plan to vaccinate nearly two million dogs across India. Mission Rabies started its journey from Goa on September 1 and nearly 28,000 dogs have already been vaccinated in the first two weeks of this month in Goa, Kottayam, Madurai, Chennai and Nagpur. The drive is now on simultaneously in Bhubaneswar, Ranchi, Calcutta, Bikaner and Guwahati.
“We also provide surgical training for long-term animal birth control programmes to tackle problems of street dog overpopulation,” said Mayer.
