To check the menace of stray and feral dogs, the Kozhikode Corporation has prepared an action plan to conduct a month-long special vaccination drive from September 28 in the city.
As part of the drive, 50 dogs will be vaccinated daily. This was decided at a special meeting of the Corporation council on Thursday. The ongoing sterilisation process will be enhanced after securing the services of two vaccinators and two trained dog catchers.
The vaccination process will be prioritised at identified hotspots such as Beypore, Naduvattom, Govindapuram, Kozhikode beach, and Eravathukunnu. Besides, councillors can specify areas facing the menace of unsheltered stray dogs.
The meeting also decided to approach the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University to depute its postgraduate students to study the present status of street dogs in the city. Special camps will be organised for licensing of pet dogs. Appropriate spaces would be identified for setting up shelters for stray dogs, it was decided.
During the meeting, some councillors raised doubts about the effectiveness of the Animal Birth Control (ABC) programme of the Corporation. Even after three years after the inception of the project, the number of stray dogs in the city has not come down, they said.
Mayor Beena Philip, who chaired the meeting, said the ABC project had helped reduce the number of street dogs in the city. Deputy Mayor C.P. Musafir Ahamed said the best ABC centre in the State was functioning under the Kozhikode Corporation.
