Every year, thousands of people die due to rabies, a deadly but preventable disease.
WSPA-trained workers from the local Animal Disease Control Centre vaccinating a dog against rabies during the launch of a new mass dog vaccination pilot project in Jieshou City, Anhui Province. The red collar shows local people that the dog has been vaccinated against this deadly disease.
Over 99% of these deaths are caused by a bite from an infected dog. Many governments around the world try to stop this disease by killing thousands of dogs, but the evidence shows that killing dogs – no matter how many – does not eliminate the disease. The only effective way to stop this disease spreading is by making dogs our protectors – by vaccinating 70% of a dog population against the disease, a barrier is created which stops rabies spreading between dogs, meaning it will eventually die out – eliminating the main threat to humans.
WSPA is calling for governments to change policy and practice from dog culling to the humane and sustainable solution – mass dog vaccination. In 2012, World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) jointly signed a cooperation agreement with the China Animal Disease Control Centre (CADC) to deliver its Red Collar campaign. This landmark agreement is introducing advanced rabies prevention and control technology to China, adapted to the local situation, with the aim of avoiding the needless culling of dogs in the name of rabies.
read more … – WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals)
