By Jel Santos
Makati City Mayor Abigail ‘Abby’ Binay has urged her constituents to have their pets vaccinated after reports surfaced that there is a shortage of human anti-rabies vaccines in the country.
Binay said that due to the shortage, the only precaution that can be done is to prevent rabies by vaccinating pets.
(PIXABAY / MANILA BULLETIN)
“Apart from the expensive cost of human anti-rabies vaccines, the shortage could translate to fatalities if patients do not receive immediate treatment. The only thing we can do right now is to prevent cases of rabies in humans by making sure that our pets are vaccinated,” she said.
Binay said that the shortage in human rabies vaccines is very disturbing as the fatality rate is at 100 percent.
In a bid to prevent deaths due to rabies, she appealed to her constituents to take advantage of the city’s anti-rabies program and have pets vaccinated for free - at the soonest time possible
Recently, the Department of Health (DOH) confirmed the global shortage of human rabies vaccines.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said DOH will intensify its anti-rabies vaccination program for dogs in response to the problem.
The city runs a year-round pet immunization program and also launched a pet microchipping project in October 2017.
The pet microchips help pet owners avoid the cost of redundant rabies vaccinations.
Each microchip contains a unique 15-digit code readable with a microchip scanner, and gives veterinarians access to a pet's vaccination records for them to determine whether or not a pet needs to be given anti-rabies shots after biting a human, and if there is a need for the bite victim to be vaccinated against rabies.
Binay has also ordered Makati VSO Chief Dr. Katherina Mangahas to work double time in spreading public awareness on rabies prevention.
For queries, residents may contact the VSO offices at 8897949 and 8341166