Taguig City Mayor Laarni Cayetano has urged her constituents to be responsible pet owners and ensure that their dogs and cats are vaccinated against rabies.
Cayetano made the appeal as the local government last Tuesday conducted a house-to-house vaccination in Barangay Ususan where 522 dogs and cats got free anti-rabies vaccine shots.
Rabies is a human infection that can be transmitted mainly through bites or scratches from an infected animal, like dogs and cats. Human infections are both preventable and curable.
Rabies exposure is classified into three categories:
- the first category involves touching, feeding, licking of healthy skin with no mucous membrane contact, casual contact with rabid patient;
- the second category involves superficial scratch/abrasion on the person without bleeding, nibbling/nipping of uncovered skin with bruising; and
- the last category involves a single or multiple transdermal bites/scratches, licking of mucous membrane, all head and neck exposures, exposure to rabid patient, handling of infected remains of an animal, and licks of broken skin.
To protect the people and pets from rabies infection, Taguigueños are highly encouraged to get their pets vaccinated against rabies.
“This is to ensure that pets, pet owners and the entire community are protected and safe from rabies,” Cayetano said.
“Part of being a responsible pet owner is not only to bathe, feed, or play with [your pet] when you have spare time, but also to ensure that
they are vaccinated [against rabies],” she added.
From January to April this year, the local government already vaccinated a total of 12, 164 dogs and cats in various barangays in the city.
Last month, Mayor Cayetano led the celebration of Rabies Awareness Month with a lecture symposium to raise awareness about rabies
infections among teachers, staff and students, as well as parents and guardians at Ricardo P. Cruz Sr. Elementary School.
The event was also attended by experts pooled by the City Health Office (CHO) and City Veterinary Office.
The Taguig City Health Office currently has five Animal Bite Treatment Centers in Barangay Ibayo-Tipas, Barangay Old Lower Bicutan, Barangay
Pinagsama, Barangay Upper Bicutan, and Barangay North Signal which are open to provide residents bitten by rabies-exposed animals with free
treatment and vaccination.
Aside from the free vaccination shots under Taguig City Anti-Rabies Drive (TCARD), the city government is also offering free spaying and
neutering for dogs and cats as a population control measure.