The Kaduna State Government has commenced activities to mark this year’s World Rabies Day with a public sensitisation walk and free anti-rabies vaccination campaign across the state.
The campaign, organised by the Kaduna State Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with veterinary, health, environmental and security agencies, began with a sensitisation walk along Ahmadu Bello Way in Kaduna.
Participants distributed information materials and engaged residents on the dangers of rabies and the importance of vaccinating domestic animals.
Speaking during the exercise, the Director of Veterinary Livestock Services in the Kaduna State Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Pakachi Sam Zakaria, said children between zero and fifteen years are particularly vulnerable to the disease, with dog bites remaining one of the major means of transmission.
Dr. Zakaria explained that the state government has commenced free anti-rabies vaccination across all twenty-three Local Government Areas, urging dog owners to take their animals to the nearest veterinary facility for vaccination.
Also speaking, a veterinarian with the Nigerian Police Force, ACP Dr. Heleyar Fali Gauje, stressed the importance of vaccinating dogs and cats to protect families and communities from the disease.
She warned that rabies can be fatal once clinical symptoms begin to appear, calling on the public to prioritise prevention through regular vaccination of their pets.
The awareness activities will continue with a courtesy visit to the Emir of Zazzau, followed by a dog show and exhibition at two o’clock in the afternoon at Millennium Park, near the Kaduna Government House.
The activities will culminate in a state-level event at Sir Kashim Ibrahim House in Kawo, Kaduna, with the Minister of Livestock Development, national officials of the Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association and the Veterinary Council of Nigeria expected to attend.
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