BMA to offer free rabies vaccines for pets
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) is offering free rabies vaccinations across the capital from next Sunday until September 16, and is calling on people with pets to take advantage of the opportunity.
BMA Health Department director Dr Chawin Sirinak said the department had joined hands with 50 BMA district offices to launch the campaign by arranging 50 mobile service units that would offer free rabies vaccinations in every district in Bangkok.
“These mobile units will visit different communities so people can bring their pets to get vaccinated near their home,” he said.
“If one is bitten or scratched by a dog, cat or other mammal, they should clean their wound with clean water and rush to the doctor for a rabies injection,” he said.
He said the BMA Health Department had held rabies vaccination campaigns twice a year in March and September since 2010 in order to control the disease.
He added that the campaigns had proven successful as only 11 animals had been found to be infected between January 1 and August 15 this year and no deaths from rabies had been reported for three years.
Rabies is a zoonotic disease that is transmitted from animals to humans, and can be fatal for both.
Chawin said epidemics of the disease and infections could be completely controlled by vaccination campaigns.
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