Children play with a dog in a Jizan village. (Okaz photo) BAISH: Health authorities have started a campaign against stray dogs in the Baish village of Al-Shari'a following the recent death of an infant after he was bitten by a dog authorities suspect may have had rabies. The 21-month-old child was bitten by a dog that served as the family's house guard, and was transferred from Baish General Hospital to King Fahd Hospital in Jizan before he passed away the following day. Omar Dakhn, head of Preventive Medicine at Jizan Health Affairs confirmed his office had registered a report of a suspected case of rabies. “The child died within 24 hours,” he said. “A committee was set up to follow up the case and samples were sent for analysis to the central laboratories in Riyadh. We are waiting for the final results to be released.” He said that precautionary measures had been put in place. “A team was sent out to vaccinate members of the victim's family and people in the vicinity,” he said. “A total of 32 people have been vaccinated. The local municipality has also been informed and is destroying stray dogs.” Municipal chairman Ibrahim Abideen said that all dogs suspected of carrying rabies are being destroyed. “We have destroyed 30 dogs in two days,” he said. “But objections from some locals caught us by surprise, as they say that many of the dogs are guard dogs and that they use them for protection.” Abideen said the regional governor had been informed of locals' objections and acts that have impeded the work of his officials. The circumstances surrounding the death of the infant, however, appear less than straightforward. Sources told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that the child had been bitten in the face by a dog that had been with the family for no longer than one month. They said his parents initially told hospital doctors that the injury was the result of a fall, leading them to stitch up the wound and discharge him. The child's condition then deteriorated over several days until his parents took him back to hospital and informed doctors of the dog bite. On April 20, he was admitted to hospital in Baish and later transferred to King Fahd Hospital in Jizan. He passed away the following day.
