Part 1:
RABIES symptoms, according to the World Health Organization include generic signs like fever, pain and unusual or unexplained tingling, pricking, or burning sensations at the wound site. As the virus moves to the central nervous system, symptoms would include hyperactivity, excitable behavior, hallucinations, lack of coordination, hydrophobia (fear of water) and aerophobia (fear of drafts or of fresh air). Death occurs after a few days due to cardio-respiratory arrest.
According to Global Alliance for Rabies Control, a non-profit organization that aims to eliminate deaths from canine rabies by 2030, there has been "no case of human rabies resulting from consumption of raw meat from a rabid animal that has been documented. However, consumption of meat from a rabid animal is strongly discouraged and should be avoided as there have been documented cases of rabies transmission in butchers who were cutting meat from a rabid animal.
"This occurred when the virus entered the body through breaks in the skin while butchering. Preparation of meat from domestic animals or wildlife killed by hunters is considered a high-risk activity for rabies transmission," the NGO stated on its website.
Dr. Julius Cloyd Jala, New Corella assistant municipal health officer, clarified that the rabies case in their municipality may not be directly caused by the consumption of rabid dog meat but through the preparation or cooking of the dog meat.
"Posible gyud to nga sa pagluto o pag-ihaw pa lang nila. It's either pwede siya napaakan, nakambrasan, or nalawayan. Pwede pud nga naa siyay samad nga open wound nga na-contaminate og laway or nikaon sila'g kilawin nga karne ato, usual baya na sa atoa hilig kaayo ang Filipino og mga kinilaw (It was possible that he got the rabies infection through the way they cook it or through butchering. It's either be that he was bitten, scratched or was licked. It could also be that he had an open wound that was contaminated by dog saliva or they consumed raw dog meat, because it's usual for us Filipinos to eat raw meat like ceviche)," Dr. Jala said.
This was also reiterated by Dr. Jasper Mijares, a veterinary medicine, saying that cooking thoroughly the meat of any rabid animal could kill rabies but it does not mean nobody could get rabies because the virus could be spread through improper preparation or butchering of the meat.
"Naa may certain temperature point nga mamatay ang rabies virus. Pero ang pangutana ana, pag butcher ba nila tama ba? Naka-mask ba sila, naka PPE ba sila (There is a certain temperature where a rabies virus is killed. But the real question there, the process of butchering the dog, was it right? Were they wearing mask, where they wearing personal protective equipment?)," Dr. Mijares said.
He added that although some pathogens or carriers of zoonotic diseases could be killed by cooking well the meat thus preventing the spread of zoonosis, some pathogens like the one responsible for the African Swine Fever (ASF) are very hard to be eliminated.
"They linger even gani'g giluto na or niagi na'g process ang meat (even if the meat has been thoroughly cooked or has undergone several processes)," Mijares said, emphasizing that not every pathogen could be killed so easily.
ASF is another example of a zoonotic disease. It may not necessarily affect human health directly but it could wipe out the whole population of swine if not managed and controlled its spread, which may result in great economic losses.
The poor are the ones directly affected by the effects of ASF as prices of fish and other pork alternatives will soar, which is sometimes impossible for low-earners to afford. It could also bring the other food and cooking ingredients' prices higher as food choices for cooking narrow without pork.
Environment and exotic animals
Meanwhile, exotic meat consumption, such as dog meat, also affects the environment.
In a United Nations report, exotic meat consumption leads to drastic declines and to some extent, the "extinction of several migratory mammal populations."
In its report, it was found that wild meat consumption is often "a major driver for legal and illegal hunting."
"About 67 of the 105 species studied were recorded as hunted. Of these 67 species, the largest intended use (47) was for wild meat consumption. Other purposes were down to cultural tradition, medicinal use, human-wildlife conflict, unintentional take and for sport or trophy hunting," the report stated.
Dr. Ruth Gamboa, a biologist and retired professor at the University of the Philippines-Mindanao, also revealed that exotic meat consumers could be another chain of the spread of a virus or disease. In other words, a person eating the meat of wild animals could become a spreader of zoonotic disease.
The Animal Welfare Act of the Philippines
To prevent the consumption of exotic meat such as dogs in the country, the lawmakers in the Philippines signed into law the Republic Act 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act of 1998.
One of the provisions of the law is the prohibition of the killing of any animal other than cattle pigs, goats, sheep, poultry, rabbits, carabaos, horses, deer, and crocodiles, except in the following instances:
(1) When it is done as part of the religious rituals of an established religion or sect or a ritual required by tribal or ethnic custom of indigenous cultural communities; however, leaders shall keep records in cooperation with the Committee on Animal Welfare;
(2) When the pet animal is afflicted with an incurable communicable disease as determined and certified by a duly licensed veterinarian;
(3) When the killing is deemed necessary to put an end to the misery suffered by the animal as determined and certified by a duly licensed veterinarian;
(4) When it is done to prevent an imminent danger to the life or limb of a human being;
(5) When done for the purpose of animal population control;
(6) When the animal is killed after it has been used in authorized research or experiments; and
(7) Any other ground analogous to the foregoing as determined and certified licensed veterinarian.
Dr. Jala, Dr. Mijares and Divene Hilario, DOH-Davao program manager, all agreed that the Philippines has already sufficient laws to protect the animals and prevent exotic meat consumption.
However, what the country lacks is the enforcement of the law.
"What we need is the strict implementation of these laws because the policymakers have crafted these laws because of this rationale (protect the animals and curb exotic meat consumption). What is needed is intensive health promotion and education, which would include informing the public of the risks and problems arising from exotic meat consumption," Dr. Roel Nickelson Solano, Research Coordinator-College of Health Sciences Education at the University of Mindanao.
He also said the implementation of these laws should be backed up by research and studies to solidify the evidence of these laws, thus resulting in more compliance and obedience to the law.
Dr. Mijares, who is also a faculty at the University of the Philippines-Mindanao, has strong advice for the public, to minimize the spread of zoonotic diseases such as rabies through meat consumption:
"One, refrain from eating meat that you don't know or you don't usually cook, because for one, you might not know how to properly handle it much less cook it. Educate yourselves about what you could get or the hazards of eating such animals. Three, if you must, you should be educated on how to properly handle and prepare it, starting from how to butcher it, the equipment you should be wearing, etc. And lastly, you should be educated on how this meat is cooked properly, like what is the temperature point where we could say that the meat is already well-cooked."
One health approach
Meanwhile, Dr. Solano emphasized the importance of the One Health approach in preventing zoonotic diseases. He said One Health is a collaborative approach between and among the health stakeholders, such as the government offices, policymakers, academe, and of course the community. He added that educating all the people that the health of human beings, animals, and their environment is interrelated is paramount in suppressing the spillover diseases.
On exotic meat consumption, he has this to say: "Hindi ito gagawin ng mga tao if they were equipped with knowledge about the health risks and hazards of it (It wouldn't be practiced by the people if they were equipped with knowledge about the health risks and hazards of exotic meat consumption). CEA
