City Government Provides 750 Free Rabies Vaccines For Bengkulu Residents

Illustration - Cat-type pets in Bengkulu City. ANTARA/Anggi Mayasari

BENGKULU - The Bengkulu City Government (Pemkot) has prepared as many as 750 thousand free vaccines for people who have pets.

Head of Livestock and Animal Health Division of the Bengkulu City Food and Agriculture Security Service, Henny Kusuma Dewi, said that the implementation of rabies vaccination for pets such as dogs, cats, and others was carried out on September 30, 2024.

"We will hold an activity on September 30. We have 750 doses of vaccine which will be given to people's pets for free and we will also provide socialization later," he said when contacted via telephone, Sunday, September 15, during a statement.

He explained that the provision of 750 rabies vaccines in commemoration of World Rabies Day used funds from the 2024 Bengkulu City APBD.

For this reason, he appealed to the entire community to take their pets to the Bengkulu City Food and Agriculture Security Service so that they could be vaccinated against rabies.

"Pet animals must be vaccinated to prevent rabies. Inject the rabies vaccine not only once, but every eight months or at least once a year. This is done so that pets do not catch dangerous diseases such as rabies, because the virus attacks all animals with hot blood and humans," he said.

In addition, rabies disease is a very dangerous zoonosis, because if clinical symptoms of rabies disease arise, it can cause death.

Meanwhile, until now in Bengkulu City there have been no cases of positive rabies animals, although the number of dog and cat bites is quite high.

It was recorded that from January to June 2024 as many as 197 people suffered a rabies-contagious animal (HPR) bite.

However, the public is asked not to panic, because the Bengkulu City Health Office (Dinkes) provides free vaccines for the public if they are bitten by HPR.