Vet Dept puts down 19 dogs in Kuala Sepetang

IPOH: The Veterinary Services Department has culled 19 stray dogs in the coastal town of Kuala Sepetang where two girls were bitten by a rabid dog.

A department spokesman said the operation was carried out within a 1km radius of the scene. Some 305 animals were examined.

“Only one pet was vaccinated. We also conducted an awareness campaign for 275 townsfolk,” he said in a statement yesterday.

The girls were bitten by a two-year-old rabid dog earlier this month.

The department confirmed on Saturday that the dog had rabies and Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abd Kadir declared the Matang sub-district as a rabies-infected area.

Meanwhile, residents said stray dogs are a common sight in Kuala Sepetang, about 70km from here.

Businessman H.H. Ng, 60, said the dogs usually roamed the streets in the evening and early morning.

“You won’t see them on the streets on a hot afternoon. They take shelter under the many stilt houses,” he said.

“It is common to see motorcyclists, cyclists or pedestrians being chased or bitten by dogs.”

Ng, who lives near the two victims, said rabies was a new thing for the residents.

He had advised the dog’s owner to give it away after it bit almost all her family members.

“She was reluctant, having reared the dog from the time it was a puppy,” he added.

Although the rabies inspection was going on throughout Monday, fishermen, coffeeshop owners and cruise operators went about their business unperturbed.

A large number of tourists was also seen.

Port Weld View Tour operator Ken Sin, who runs a river cruise by the coast, described the rabid dog incident as an isolated case.

“Tourism is an important sector here. Hopefully, it won’t drive the tourists away,” he said.