Steer clear of stray dogs and cats

‘When encountering stray or wild animals, avoid approaching or interacting with them.’

My friends, if you come across stray dogs and cats in Sibu and Bintulu, don’t ever touch them even if they look lovable and cute to you.

You see, doing so puts you at great risk of contracting rabies. Besides that, Kuching and Bintulu were recently declared rabies infection areas after 12 of the 16 dogs tested by the authorities were found to have rabies.

According to Sarawak Food Industry, Commodities and Rural Development Minister Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom, eight of the dogs were from Kuching, two in Bintulu and one each in Padawan and Bau.

He said in a statement that all the dogs were strays and had not been vaccinated against rabies.

Before this, in a widely viralled case, a light brown pedigree dog displaying signs of rabies was captured near a food court in Bayor Bukit, Tabuan Jaya in Kuching.  

The dog had bitten and injured three adults, a child and another dog in Tabuan Desa Indah’s Lorong Keranji 4 and 4A4.

Kuching South City Council (MBKS) Mayor, Datuk Wee Hong Seng, urged the public to remain vigilant even though the dog had been caught.

He urged the public to promptly inform the city council if they observed any concerning behaviour in their dogs.

In Sibu, during an Anti-Rabies Awareness Talk held at Sekolah Kebangsaan (SK) Sentosa, Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) Sibu Divisional Office head, Dr Siong Jing Jing, also warned students to steer clear of stray dogs and cats because of the risk of rabies.

“When encountering stray or wild animals, avoid approaching or interacting with them. Inform adults if the wild animal behaves strangely so that appropriate measures can be taken,” he advised them.

He also urged the public to regularly vaccinate their pets to protect them from rabies.

He added,” It is a collective responsibility to prevent rabies, achievable by responsibly caring for our pets and not allowing them to roam freely outside your premises.”

In a statement carried by the press yesterday, State Health director Dr Ooi Choo Huck revealed that so far this year, Sarawak had recorded three deaths caused by human rabies.

He pointed out that none of the victims sought immediate treatment or anti-rabies vaccinations after being beaten by scratched by animals.

The first case involved a 39-year-old woman from Kuching who died on Jan 9, 2024.

She was bitten by a stray dog in her housing area last month but did not seek treatment until she began slurring her words, became physically and had mobility issues.

The second patient was a 61-year-old man from Sebauh, Bintulu who was scratched by his pet dog and cat last year. He did not seek treatment until he felt weak and had trouble swallowing liquids on Jan 5.

Dr Ooi said none of the man’s pets, which were known to roam freely with stray animals, were vaccinated against rabies. The man died on Jan 12.

Meanwhile, the third fatality so far this year was a  42-year-old man from Kuching who died on Jan 20.

He suffered from stomaches, mobility issues, fever, was slurring his words and had hydrophobia on Jan 12. He was referred to the Sarawak General Hospital on Jan 16.

The man, who had over 10 cats that mingled freely with strays, was scratched on the right elbow by his pet cat but did not seek treatment.

Dr Ooi said with the three latest cases, the total number of reported rabies cases in humans in Sarawak since the outbreak in July 2017 had reached 78, resulting in 71 deaths.

He reminded the public that they could get rabies through infected animals and advised them to seek treatment at the nearest health facility if bitten or scratched by dogs or cats

He said rabies in humans could be prevented with anti-rabies vaccinations and Rabies Immunoglobulin even if exposed to animals infected with rabies.

Dr Ooi advised the public not to allow their pet dogs and cats to roam without supervision, to avoid handling any wild animals including stray dogs and cats, whether dead or alive.

Meanwhile, in the latest development in the fight against rabies, 394 veterans of the Malaysian Armed Forces (MAF) in Sarawak have been recruited as volunteers for the Immune Belt Enforcement Team (IBET) to curb the spread of rabies at the entry points of the state.

Deputy Premier and the State Disaster Management Committee chairman, Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas  said the veterans had been mobilised the national borders from Lundu to Ba’kelalan.

“They will be mobile and not stationed at the border posts. We have identified that rabies is brought from neighbouring country through the border points.

“We do not kill animals that are found to be infected but what we do is to targeted removal of the animals,” he told reporters.

My friends, have you vaccinated your dogs? Do so now if you haven’t.

Sarawak Food Industry, Commodities and Rural Development Minister Datuk Seri Dr Stephen Rundi Utom signed an order recently under Section 40 (1) of the Veterinary Public Health Ordinance 1999, requiring all dogs in the state be vaccinated against rabies.

“Dog owners must be responsible in ensuring that their beloved pets are vaccinated against rabies. Any owner who fails to adhere to the order will be deemed to have committed an offence and fined up to RM2,500.

“Any dog who has been exposed to rabies and (the owner) does not have proof of the vaccination will be put down,” he said.

Rundi added that the Sarawak Veterinary Services Department and the Sarawak Security and Enforcement Unit had intensified their statewide anti-rabies vaccination programme.

He said dog owners could get their pets vaccinated at any government veterinary clinic during office hours.

My friends, let us take the rabies threat seriously and play our part by vaccinating our dogs and keeping away from strays.