| Official reporting of rabies in Nigeria started in 1912. The National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom, within the last 77 years, confirmed 4809 cases of animal rabies in Nigeria. Rabies control through immunization programs has crashed woefully and consequently, the rabies situation has become chaotic and confounding. Locally, only 2,137,615 doses of dog anti-rabies vaccines were produced between 1956 and 2005 (average 43,625 per year) by NVRI, Vom. Dog population in Nigeria is currently estimated at 8 million. In the last 20 years of research and follow ups on rabies and associated problems, only 10% of the dogs’ population received anti-rabies immunization. Within the immunized dogs, rabies outbreaks occurred frequently. Evidences on the trend... |
