FCTA targets 20,000 dogs, cats for rabies vaccination

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The Federal Capital Territory Administration has commenced a two-week mass vaccination campaign targeting between 15,000 and 20,000 dogs and cats across the six area councils of the territory.

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The exercise, coordinated by the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, is aimed at containing the spread of rabies following cases reported in some parts of the FCT.

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The Mandate Secretary of the secretariat, Sulieman Ango, disclosed this on Wednesday while monitoring the vaccination exercise in Gwagwalada Area Council.

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Ango said more than 100 veterinary officers had been deployed to strategic locations across the territory to ensure adequate coverage during the exercise.

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He said the campaign would cover all 62 wards of the FCT, adding that vaccination would continue daily at designated centres throughout the two weeks.

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“We have the firm conviction that by vaccinating 15,000 to 20,000 dogs and cats, we are going to stop the spread of the virus.

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“From what we have recorded so far, two weeks is sufficient time for our team to cover this scope,” he said.

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Ango said the intervention was necessary to prevent the spread of the disease beyond Gwagwalada and Kwali Area Councils, where cases had been recorded.

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He added that no new cases had been detected outside the affected areas following the intervention of veterinary teams.

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The Mandate Secretary urged residents to remain calm and cooperate with veterinary officers by making their dogs and cats available for vaccination.

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He said the exercise was being conducted free of charge at designated centres across the six area councils.

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The Director of Veterinary Services, Dr Karnak Dandam, described rabies as a deadly but preventable disease, stressing that vaccination remained the most effective way of preventing its transmission.

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Dandam warned that rabies was invariably fatal once clinical symptoms appeared in an infected person.

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“Rabies is a very deadly disease. Once a rabid dog bites a human being and the clinical signs set in, there is no survival, but it is 100 per cent preventable once the dogs are vaccinated,” he said.

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The FCTA had on July 15 confirmed eight rabies cases and two deaths in the territory and subsequently announced plans for a mass vaccination campaign across the six area councils.

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The administration has also urged residents to vaccinate their dogs and cats and report suspected cases to veterinary authorities.

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