10 die as dogs bite 26 000

Talent Hwari : Herald Reporter

About 26 000 people were bitten by dogs last year, with 10 of them dying from such bites, while statistics reveal that the majority of the dogs were not vaccinated and some of them were stray.A survey by the Ministry of Health and Child Care recorded under the weekly reports on Epidemic-Prone Diseases, Deaths and Public Health Events indicated that an average of 500 people were bitten by dogs every week in 2016.

The same survey reveals that Masvingo and Manicaland had the highest number of such dog cases. The report also details the dog bites in the week-ending 18 December 2016, in which 559 cases were reported, with 121 of them having been vaccinated, while the other 121 were unvaccinated, with 317 of the dogs being stray.

In the week leading to Christmas Day last year there was “a total of 419 cases of dog bites reported. Of these, 88 cases were inflicted by vaccinated dogs, 101 by unvaccinated dogs and 230 by dogs of unknown status”, according to the report.

The provinces which reported the highest number of dog bites during the week were Manicaland (67) and Masvingo (66).

The leading to New Year’s Day recorded 502 reported cases of dog bites, according to the report, with 116 being inflicted by vaccinated dogs, 87 unvaccinated dogs and 299 by dogs of unknown status.

The provinces which recorded the highest dog bites during the week were still Masvingo and Manicaland, with 83 and 69 cases respectively.

The first week of January ending on the 7th, recorded 583 cases of dog bites, with 122 being inflicted by vaccinated dogs, 110 by unvaccinated ones and 351 by dogs of unknown status.

Like in the trend before, Masvingo and Manicaland recorded the highest cases of dog bites during the week at 92 apiece. For snake bites, the report recorded that in the week ending December 18, 2016, 147 people were bitten by snakes, with two of them succumbing to the bites.

For the week ending on Christmas Day, 214 snake bites were recorded, with no deaths, while in the week ending on New Year’s Day one person succumbed to the snake venom out of 178 who were bitten.

The week leading up to Janaury 7 this year saw 190 snake bites cases being recorded, with one person dying.