Dog pet rabies vaccination

Costs fraction vs bite care

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, April 15, (PIA) – For merely spending a fraction of the medical cost of ‘treating,’ a bite victim to make sure the rabies virus is stopped from getting to the victim’s brain, Bohol’s rabies woes could be held on a leash.

Based on the data shared by the Office of the Provincial veterinarian through Dr. Christopher Jay Tanduyan, at the current cost of getting medical care to a dog bite victim with the wound closer to the brain is on the average, pegged at P22,500.

And with 17,398 bite cases in Bohol ranging from the serious bite injuries with wounds in close proximity to the central nervous system as well as minor but concerning scratches, total costs for the medical attention alone, gets to P179,135.00, at 22,500 per victim’s medical care.

There has not been a tested drug to counter rabies as the symptoms start to show.

“It is almost always certain that death would follow as the rabies symptoms start to appear,” veterinary Dr. Tanduyan bared as a matter of fact.

In Bohol, the Provincial Health Office tracked 6,782 reported dog bite victims in Bohol in the 2021 data, some P152,595,000 have been spent both by the government and the bite victims and their families, if only to safeguard the life and keep the virus at bay, before its races to the brain and then the symptoms start manifesting.

For bites that caused minor concerns and still needing medical care, with cost of the rabies vaccine at P2,500, Boholanos have spent another P26,540.00 for the 10,616 bite victims in this category.

Speaking to the Association of United Development Information Officers of Bohol, Dr. Tanduyan talked about the cost of keeping dogs as pets but not getting responsible about them.

Apart from dog bites which can happen when a dog is let off from the master’s effective control, the spate of dog-related vehicular accidents in Bohol has always been a monthly crime highlight, smearing Bohol’s peace and order and public safety record as a tourist destination.

Beyond that, stray dogs pose sanitation issues, defecating in public areas, foraging in trash cans and scattering garbage for food leading to feral attacks.

Over reports of livestock being attacked and the entrails being targets, those are indicators of feral dogs in the vicinity and food is getting scarce that they start feeding on livestock, the male vet shared.

The bigger concern however is dog bites, he stressed.

With the rabies virus getting to the central nervous system, once the symptoms appear, it is always fatal to the dog and the bite victim.

With the disease killing between 300-400 Filipinos every year, the number could potentially spike, if the issue is not attended to.

With Bohol into tourism and yet had 9 positive rabies cases in 2022 and 5 at the first quarter of 2023, in Bohol’s hands is that leash to control the rabies problem, either proactively or actively.

By actively, that is preparing some P180 million for treatment of bite cases, or pushing for a dog population vaccination which entails less than P10M, shares the veterinarian.

Another smarter option however is go engage animal pet lovers to bring their pets out for vaccination and then responsibly putting on leashes and fences in only to keep their dogs in their effective control.

Authorities peg the cost of dog vaccination at P50.00 per head, to some 196,872 dogs, this should be P9,843,600, a fraction of the cost for treatment. (PIA-7/Bohol)

WHO LET THE DOGS OUT? Dogs, when unleashed or allowed outside the fences and the master’s effective control is costing Bohol nearly P180 million, points out veterinarian at the OPV Dr. Christopher Jay Tanduyan. A full vaccination coverage for the local dog population can only rack up to P9M in costs, which could again decrease if pet-owners share in the cost, and in return, a rabies free tourist island of Bohol. (PIABohol)