50 stray dogs under observation for rabies at ABC centre

More than 50 stray dogs captured from Kozhikode city are under observation at the Animal Birth Control (ABC) centre, Poolakkadavu, as they are suspected to have been bitten by another stray dog that died recently and was later found to have had rabies. The same stray dog had also bitten 19 people on June 24, 2025.

“The dog that bit so many people was captured the day after the incident and died at the centre the following day. Samples were sent to the Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Kannur, and the results we received on Saturday [June 28, 2025] confirmed that the dog had rabies,” said V.S. Sreeshma, Veterinary Officer attached to the Kozhikode Corporation.

The dog had bitten 19 people in and around Wayanad Road and the Mavoor Road junction, including a four-year-old girl and a 70-year-old man. All of them were administered the rabies vaccine on the same day as a precaution. The incident triggered panic in the city and raised concerns about the effectiveness of the ABC programme.

The 50 dogs were captured from the same area where the incidents occurred. “They have been placed in separate kennels and will be under observation for at least 10 days, enough time for symptoms of rabies to appear if they are infected. After the observation period, they will be sterilised and released back into their natural surroundings following rabies vaccination,” Dr. Sreeshma added.

The Corporation is learnt to have taken effective measures to control the stray dog population. Since its launch in 2019, the centre has carried out over 15,000 sterilisations, averaging 15 to 20 procedures a day. The district panchayat also operates a functional ABC centre at Balussery. Dogs brought to the centres are sterilised and released back to the locations from where they were picked.