Buleleng still safe from rabies, agency assures

Alit Kertaraharja and Ni Komang Erviani ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Denpasar   |  Mon, 10/26/2009 1:43 PM  |  Bali

As the rabies epidemic spreads to Tabanan and Karangasem regencies, Buleleleng Agriculture and Veterinary Agency head Putu Ardika said the coastal regency was still considered a safe region.

"Buleleng is still safe *from the epidemic*," he said over the weekend.

However, he warned local residents not to be complacent in coping with the threat of the deadly epidemic, which had claimed at least 18 lives since it first hit the island late last year.

Ardika said that so far, the agency had recorded 80 instances of dogs biting humans in Buleleng.

Fortunately, none of the victims had developed symptoms of rabies.

"Although no victims were reported in Buleleng, we should not let our guards down.

"We must continue implementing the necessary preventative measures," he said.

The agency, Ardika said, had distributed a total of 10,000 vaccines against rabies (VAR) to various areas in the regency.

"We prioritize the border areas of the regency, because they are the most vulnerable regions," he said.

The agency's officials are currently going door-to-door vaccinating pet and stray dogs in those areas.

"We are assisted by officials from the subdistrict and village administrations," he said.

Ardika conceded the number of available VAR was less than sufficient to cover the regency's actual needs. There are more than 41,000 dogs in the regency now.

"That's why the vaccination drive is conducted in vulnerable areas and regions with large numbers of dogs first," he stressed.

Seririt, Singaraja, and Kubutambahan were identified as subdistricts with large dog populations.

"We've also culled stray dogs en masse in the regency. As many as 250 stray dogs have been culled," he said.

Ardika lamented residents' low level of awareness about rabies.

"Many people refused to have their pet dogs inoculated with VAR," he said, adding that VAR inoculation was provided free of charge.

Southern parts of Denpasar and Badung were the first regions hit by the rabies epidemic in Bali. The local administrations launched various measures to contain the epidemic, including mass-culling, vaccination drives and the issuance of a gubernatorial instruction to prohibit dogs from being moved in and out of affected regions.

All those measures are said to have failed as the epidemic spread into Tabanan and Karangasem regencies.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika asked the Bali Legislative Council to speed up the deliberation of the rabies bylaw that would give the administration stronger legal ground and wider authority to cope with the epidemic.

The bylaw would have held pet owners legally responsible for taking preventative measures against rabies.

"I beg the public not to treat this matter lightly," he said.

This year, the Bali Administration has allocated Rp 10 billion toward rabies prevention and mitigation programs.

Most of the funds were used to purchase VAR for humans, which the administration provides free of charge to the public. By October, the funds had almost dried up.

"In 2010, we will allocate unlimited amounts of funding to contain this epidemic," Pastika pledged.

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