The Animal Husbandry officials have targeted over two lakh dogs, including 40,000 domesticated ones, for anti-rabies vaccination drive all over Chittoor district in the next few weeks.
Speaking to the media here on Thursday, Joint Director (AH) M. Srinivasa Rao said that as per instructions of District Collector Siddarth Jain, the hotel owners and meat shop operators were directed to keep their premises clean and dispose the waste and garbage immediately. He said that during Dial Your Collector programme, specially arranged to record public complaints on stray dogs menace, a number of calls were received from all over the district, pointing to concentration of dogs at hotels and meat shops, causing public inconvenience.
Dr. Rao appealed to the parents to check their children from teasing dogs. “Generally, dogs with cubs will attack public when they are disturbed and when children try to pull their tails and ears. But, there is a fallacy that all dogs which bite public are rabid,” he said.
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The official said that over 1,700 dogs in Tirupati and 500 dogs in Puttur were already sterilised as part of controlling stray dog population and the drive would continue in all municipalities and panchayats, using the services of professional dogcatchers and voluntary organisations.
The Collector also gave instructions for keeping stocks of anti-rabies vaccines in all public health centres in the district, Dr. Rao said.