ALOR STAR, Oct 1 — The Kedah Veterinary Department has culled 1,626 wild dogs in the state so far, in an effort to contain the rabies epidemic here.

According to its director Dr Kamaliah Ghazali, 2,010 dogs have also been vaccinated.

“To date, 18 dogs were detected to be positive for rabies, with 17 being wild dogs while another was domesticated. All have been culled,” she told Bernama today.

She added that 42 cases of dogs biting humans have also been reported in Kedah, but so far, none have resulted in rabies infections in humans.

In a media statement on Sept 22, Kedah Health Department director Datuk Dr Morhizan Ismail also said so far there had been no cases of rabies infection in humans.

The Agriculture and Agro-based Ministry recently announced that Kedah, Perlis and Penang as states affected by the rabies epidemic.

On the control measures against rabies at the Malaysia-Thailand border, Dr Kamaliah said the Kedah Veterinary Department was cooperating with other government agencies at the border areas.

“The Department is monitoring and working with the authorities at the borders to obtain information on wild dogs in the areas,” she said.

Last week, Chairman of the State Local Government, Water Supply, Water Resources, Energy, and Non-Governmental Bodies Committee Datuk Badrol Hisham Hashim said the state was considering seeking Thailand’s cooperation in the efforts to prevent wild dogs entering Malaysia from Thailand through the border.

He said the Kedah local authorities have also been urged to be more aggressive in implementing measures to control the spread of rabies in the state.

Rabies is a zoonotic disease caused by the Lyssavirus which can infect humans through bites by infected dogs and through wounds on the human skin which have been exposed to the saliva, fluids and body tissues of infected animals. — Bernama