Rabies-free islands seen

THE Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) has prepared the documents to declare Bantayan and Zaragosa, Badian as areas free of rabies cases.

During the “Kapihan sa Philippine Information Agency” forum on March 27, PVO veterinarian Dr. Mary Ann Gabona said her office may declare Bantayan Island (composed of Sta. Fe, Bantayan and Madridejos towns) and Zaragosa Island in Badian as rabies-free zones in September.

Gabona said the two islands are usually declared rabies-free zones because they can easily trace the dogs and cats that enter the areas.

In 2011, the islands of Camotes (San Francisco, Poro, Tudela and Pilar), as well as Malapascua Island in Barangay Logon, Daanbantayan, were declared rabies-free zones by the Department of Health (DOH), which linked with the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the program.

The criteria for declaring a place rabies-free are the absence of cases of rabies in humans and animals in the past three years, the certification from the municipal veterinary office and the municipal health office that there are no cases of rabies in humans and animals, certificates issued by the PVO and the Provincial Health Office; at least 80 percent of the dogs in the place vaccinated during a preliminary evaluation, and the submission of heads to the DA 7 office if dogs die.

The DOH and DA in Central Visayas will conduct a pre-assessment and then another assessment before the final declaration.

Based on PVO data, the number of dogs increased to 338,798 in Cebu Province (excluding Cebu and Lapu-Lapu Cities) in 2018 from 316,608 in 2011. /