Due to the hiatus in the culling of rabid dogs by the relevant departments in the city and cantonment, packs of stray dogs have started to be seen roving on the roads, markets and streets and incidents of dog bites among the citizens are also rapidly increasing.
A large pack of stray dogs have also established their habitat in front of the emergency department of the district headquarters hospital adjacent to Fawara Chowk.
The culling of stray dogs in the inner city and cantonment areas is the responsibility of the Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation and the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board. However, due to the non-culling of the canines by these institutions, their numbers have increased tremendously.
The number of dog bite cases in the three hospitals of the city has also been continuously increasing for the last three months.
During the last month, the number of people who came to three allied hospitals in the city after being bitten by stray dogs has been about 70.
Such people are administered a special vaccine so that the dangerous dog germs can be eliminated from their bodies.
Children going to school in the morning and women and elderly people leaving their homes are also attacked by these dogs. Butcher shops and the meat remains thrown at the roadsides have become the gathering grounds for these dogs.
Earlier, after killing such stray dogs by poisoning by the concerned authorities, they were buried in pits. However, it seems that this practice has now been abolished by the relevant institutions. The stray dogs often enter the District Headquarters Hospital due to the passageways in the nearby residential block and the outer walls of the hospital. They also get a chance to stay at the hidden places near the cars parked in the parking lots.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 20th, 2022.
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