AMMAN — A countrywide project
aims to capture and sterilize stray dogs with the aim of reducing their numbers,
according to the
Ministry of Local Administration, which said it intends to
place clear frameworks and comprehensive plans to eliminate the spread of stray
dogs.
اضافة اعلان
"Among the ministry’s plans
is the Animal Birth Control project, which includes capturing stray dogs,
sterilizing them, and vaccinating them against rabies," said Asmaa Al-Ghzawi,
a ministry environmental advisor.
"After being vaccinated
and sterilised, these dogs will be fitted with an ear tag that distinguishes
them from other dogs,” Ghzawi told
Jordan News, adding that the dogs will then
be set free.
She said that the ministry has
circulated to all municipalities the need to allocate plots of land in order to
implement this project, in order to construct a shelter for dogs, in addition
to the need to train workers on how to capture stray dogs and nurse them.
The ministry also informed
municipalities of the need to intensify clean-up campaigns, and to
supplement the anticipated amounts needed to complete this project in each
municipality on the 2022 state budget, Ghzawi said.
“This project will be
implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture. Logistical support
will come from us, however, sterilization, vaccination, and medical operations
will be conducted under the supervision of the directorates of the agriculture
ministry,” Ghzawi said.
She said that the estimated
budget for the implementation of this project is not yet clear, adding that
"a team headed by the (ministry), in association with the
Agriculture Ministry, Princess Alia Foundation, and the Greater Amman Municipality has been
assigned to study the estimated cost.”
Ghzawi said that it is hard to
tell how many stray dogs this project will cover, adding that the project will
take between two to four years before it achieves its objectives.
"People may not quickly
see the difference on the ground, because it will take some time. In the
first year, results may still be unclear because implementing the project needs
specific preparations," she said.
Ghzawi said that not all stray
dogs are rabid dogs, and that if people see a stray dog around, they should just
keep walking and ignore it.
“Usually, these dogs do not
hurt you if you do nothing to them. I cannot deny that some of them are harmful
in all cases, but that is not the case for all of them," she said.
Hazem Al-Yacoub, an animal
rights activist, told
Jordan News that he appreciated greatly the ministry’s decision
to implement this important project.
“The
Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) had already implemented this project, and had the ministry
not found it sufficiently effective, they would not have decided to implement
it," Yacoub said.
"I have noticed the
number of complaints (about stray dogs) have decreased significantly after the
GAM decided to implement this project, and I believe that results will be even better
following this decision," he said.
The activist stressed people’s
responsibility towards these sterilized and vaccinated dogs is to just stay
away from them. “They will be clearly noticeable because they will have a
specific (tag) that distinguishes them from other dogs," Yacoub said.
A Ministry of Health source
told Al-Ghad that around 6,000 cases of stray dog attacks are reported
annually. Treatment for each stray dog bite costs JD650, the source added, with
the total annual cost topping JD2 million.
The source warned people not
to be careless when it comes to dog bites, because they can lead to serious
contagious diseases and can potentially lead to death.
At a recent meeting that
included the ministries of agriculture and local administration, as well as the
Princess Alia Foundation, Minister of Agriculture Khaled Hneifat emphasized the
importance of interdepartmental coordination in implementing the project to
ensure the safety and health of both the public and the animals.
The Health Ministry source
said that many municipalities need financial and technical support to deal with
the spread of stray dogs, noting that the GAM began this project a few years
ago, tagging strays instead of shooting and killing them, which is a method
followed in most developed countries. He said the animals are tranquilized and
moved to the Muwaqqar animal center.
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