“Everybody should remain calm; the government is there for them. With our minister at the helm of affairs, residents do not need to be scared of anything,”
By Moses Okorie
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has launched a two-week free vaccination campaign to protect dogs and cats against rabies, with between 15,000 and 20,000 animals expected to be immunised across the territory.
The exercise, led by the Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, is aimed at containing the spread of rabies following the confirmation of cases in Gwagwalada and Kwali Area Councils.
The Mandate Secretary of the Secretariat, Mr Sulieman Ango, announced the commencement of the campaign on Wednesday while inspecting the exercise in Gwagwalada.
Ango said the intervention was intended to create a strong protective barrier against the virus and prevent its transmission to both animals and humans.
He noted that, apart from the cases already identified in Gwagwalada and Kwali, no further cases had been detected in other parts of the FCT.
The mandate secretary disclosed that more than 100 veterinary personnel had been deployed to various locations to ensure effective implementation of the exercise within the two-week timeframe.
“We have the firm conviction that by vaccinating 15,000 to 20,000 dogs and cats, we are going to stop the spread of the virus,” Ango said.
He attributed the swift response to the intervention to the approval and support of the FCT Minister, Mr Nyesom Wike, which he said enabled the secretariat to promptly deploy personnel and resources to affected communities.
Ango appealed to residents to remain calm and cooperate with veterinary officials by making their dogs and cats available for vaccination.
He said vaccination would take place every day at designated centres across the six area councils throughout the campaign.
“Everybody should remain calm; the government is there for them. With our minister at the helm of affairs, residents do not need to be scared of anything,” he said.
The Director of Veterinary Services, Dr Karnak Dandam, said the campaign would cover all 62 wards in the FCT as part of efforts to eliminate rabies from the territory.
Dandam explained that although rabies was preventable through vaccination, the disease was almost invariably fatal once clinical symptoms developed in humans.
“Once a rabid dog bites a human being and the clinical signs set in, there is no survival, but it is 100 per cent preventable once the dogs are vaccinated,” he said.
He urged residents to ensure that both domestic and stray dogs were vaccinated, stressing that immunisation remained the most effective way of preventing transmission.
According to him, more than 12,000 doses of vaccine had been secured for the exercise, while veterinary teams were working continuously to vaccinate animals across the territory.
Dandam also disclosed that some communities had taken early steps to address the situation. He said Kuje Area Council commenced its own vaccination efforts after the initial reports of rabies, while Bassa village collaborated with the secretariat to secure vaccines for animals in the community.
He expressed optimism that the available vaccines and the number of veterinary personnel deployed would enable the government to meet its target during the two-week exercise.
Residents in Gwagwalada who benefited from the programme praised the FCTA for its prompt intervention and the provision of the service free of charge.
Mr Nathan Yusuf, a dog owner who brought his animals for their first rabies vaccination, said he was pleased with the initiative.
Another beneficiary, Bashir Yusuf, a hunter who presented three dogs for vaccination, also commended the administration for making veterinary services available to residents at no cost.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the FCTA had on July 15 confirmed eight cases of rabies and two deaths in the territory.
Following the development, the administration urged residents to vaccinate their dogs and cats and announced plans for a mass vaccination campaign across villages and towns in the six area councils.