Western Visayas is second with most number of rabies cases in the whole country in 2019.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) in Western Visayas confirmed this Friday, January 3.

Dr. Pacifico Lumauag, DA-Western Visayas rabies control coordinator, said the region had a total of 25 fatalities due to rabies this year.

Statistics presented by the agriculture official show that the population of dogs in the region was over 500,000 in 2019.

Lumauag said the high number of rabies cases in the region was due to the lack of anti-rabies vaccines.

However, he said the Department of Budget and Management has allocated P8 million this year for the purchase of anti-rabies vaccines.

He also called on local government units in the region to help the Bureau of Animal Industry in purchasing the vaccines. (TDE)