SOS suggests govt opt for neutering approach too in anti-rabies fight
KUCHING: Culling stray dogs may be the easy solution in the fight against rabies but it does not help much in achieving the target of having 70 per cent of the dog population in Sarawak getting vaccinated.
When making this assertion at a press conference here yesterday, Save Our Strays Association (SOS) Kuching president Kitty Chin suggested that the government opt for neutering approach to complement the ongoing mass vaccination programmes statewide to contain the rabies outbreak.
She said most of the ‘strays’ seen roaming around were not ‘true strays’ but ‘community dogs’ which presently do not have homes to stay in.
These ‘community dogs’, according to her, are being taken care of by individuals termed as ‘community feeders’ where these dogs have been vaccinated against rabies.
Furthermore, Chin said these dogs have also been neutered, meaning they would not be able to reproduce and the chances of them biting or attacking others are reduced as they would be less aggressive.
“Malaysia would become the laughing stock of the world if we opt for culling in our effort to contain rabies. This is because when you cull the strays or community dogs, other groups of unknown dogs are likely to come in and take their places in the community.
“And vaccination alone is not sufficient since dogs, even those with owners, if not neutered can still reproduce and pet owners may abandon those puppies that could wind up as strays,” she added.
Chin opined that if RM9 million could be allocated for the culling operation, the government instead ought to consider spending that money on neutering and vaccination programmes for dogs across Sarawak.
She stressed that ‘community dogs’, estimated at 1,200 in the city, would not cause nuisance since they are being fed by the ‘community feeders’ and therefore would not search for food.
“We really need the public to understand this. Also, all animals are territorial by nature. After you remove these dogs, a new group of dogs will come in to dominate the territory. Hence, culling is not the solution.
“Only when a community treats its animals humanely can we say we are a part of a caring society. The community dogs that are vaccinated and neutered have colourful double plastic chain collars,” she explained.
Thus she said it was a mistake to catch and kill the ‘community dogs’ which she described as ‘the frontline defence in the fight against rabies’.
“The indiscriminate removal of duly vaccinated community dogs will likely result in the migration of stray dogs into the newly-vacated area. There will be a threat of rabies induced outbreak since these migrating strays have not been vaccinated.”
Chin however added there was no scientific proof that the removal of ‘community dogs’ could control rabies outbreak.
In order to help the government achieves the 70 per cent target, public relations officer Kimberly Lim said SOS Kuching launched its pilot project - Neuter Vaccination Assistance Programme (NVAP) in December last year where 45 stray and pet dogs and 10 cats had benefitted.
Following the success of the pilot project, she said the NVAP has been brought back to the community this year and set to benefit areas in Tabuan Tranquility Phase 4 and 5.
“Last December, we had the pilot project at Stutong Indah and it was well received by the community there. Ours is door-todoor vaccination whereas the mass vaccination programme (offered by the government) is located at a centre.
“Some owners are not able to bring their pets to the mass vaccination centre.
“Moreover, those programmes are mostly held until 2pm on Saturdays when most people work half-day,” she added.
Lim also pointed out that the government vaccination programmes, even though free, are not meant for cats, which face equal risk from rabies.
For the NVAP this year, she said pet owners have to pay only half the neutering costs priced between RM100 and RM185, depending on the weight of the pet.
Other services include core vaccination at RM30 per pet, antirabies vaccination at RM45 per pet, pick-up service at RM30 per round trip and micro-chipping at RM45 per set, she added.
For further information on NVAP, call SOS Kuching at 012-8833088, 0111-0807922 or 012-8991269 or email to: soskuching@gmail.com.