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Rabies outbreak hits Lesotho

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MASERU – AFTER being attacked by a stray dog in his village of Ha-Tsolo in the south-western part of Maseru, Tsolo Majoro didn’t think much of the incident.

Apart from a small wound on his left arm, the dog had not done much damage — or so he thought.

“We did not take it seriously and we just used methylated spirit to kill gems on the wound,” said ’Malefa Majoro, his wife.

Days after the attack, the 51-year-old bricklayer succumbed to rabies.

His widow, ’Malefa, said the wound on his left arm was not deep.

“It was just two scratches where the dog tried unsuccessfully to dip its canines,” she said.

The case highlights how the country is struggling with the threat of a rabies outbreak. To counter the threat, authorities have now gone on a massive vaccination campaign.

In the meantime, many risk meeting Majoro’s fate. Majoro met the dog on his way to a nearby shop to buy a beverage in October and it attacked him without any provocation.

’Malefa said after some days her husband began to show signs of flu or fever and he went to the Lesotho Defence Force (LDF) Clinic at the nearby Ha-Ratjomose village.

He didn’t tell doctors that he had been bitten by a dog because “in his belief he was suffering from a common cold,” said ’Malefa.

“The wound was not bad. Only canine prints could be seen on the arm,” the widow said, fighting tears while sitting on the mourning mattress next to her mother.

“He was given an injection,” the widow said.

When thepost visited the bereaved family on Monday, relatives had gathered at the Majoro’s home to offer support to the family.

Sobbing, she said his health condition worsened after his visit to the doctor. On October 25 he had difficulty walking.

“He was confined to the house, he could not go outside the house. Worst of it all, he was unable to drink water,” she said.

His condition worsened over the next few days before the family decided to return to the doctor at the LDF Clinic where he was transferred to Queen ’Mamohato Memorial Hospital.

’Malefa said nurses at the QMMH administered “an injection” on her husband, who then vomited profusely.

“I was told that my husband was poisoned and they were not sure if he drank it or ate the poison.

“The hospital staff demanded answers from her about what Majoro had eaten,” she recalled.

’Malefa said she told the hospital that her husband was bitten by a stray dog.

“The diagnosis thereafter was that the deceased had contracted a virus that gave birth to rabies. It was already at an advanced stage so the doctors told me that they would try their best to save my husband’s life but it was not to be,” she said.

’Malefa says the death of her husband, who was the breadwinner in the family, is devastating.

She says she was retrenched from a textile factory at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Authorities and ordinary people say the rabies threat is real.

’Marapelang Lesenyeho from Ha-Shelile, a village close to Ha-Tsolo, said she had to put down a dog that had symptoms of rabies.

She said the dog became wild and bit people in the family.

“My dog had always been friendly and the children could play with it.

“After biting one family member who was rushed to the hospital, we killed it with spears,” Lesenyeho said.

Dr Relebohile Mahloane, a veterinarian in the Ministry of Agriculture, said the ministry went on a vaccination blitz in the Tsolo area from Sunday until yesterday.

“We are in the middle of the outbreak,” Dr Mahloane said, expressing disappointment with the poor turnout during the vaccination campaign.

Dr Mahloane said officials vaccinated only 15 dogs during a campaign in Khubetsoana and Ha-Matala in June this year.

“People come only when the dogs bite them. We go out to the villages to inform the people about the disease.

“We conducted a nation-wide campaign in April and still the turnover was poor,” said Dr Mahloane.

Dr Mahloane said Maseru district has between 20 000 and 30 000 dogs but only 3 000 dogs were brought to be vaccinated during the ministry’s campaigns.

“The sad reality is that people keeping dogs do not pay even a cent to get their dogs vaccinated but still they do not come through,” he said.

He said there is a myth amongst the people that vaccinated dogs lose their vigilance to the extent that thieves can enter their home and the dogs won’t even bark.

“If one is bitten by a dog they should rush to a nearby clinic immediately,” advised Dr Mahloane.

The Public Relations Manager in the Ministry of Health, ’Mamolise Falatsa, said people who have been bitten by dogs should visit health centres immediately.

Rabies is a preventable viral disease most often transmitted through the bite from a rabid animal.

The rabies virus infects the central nervous system of mammals, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death.

Rabies is usually spread through an animal bite.

Animals most likely to spread rabies include dogs, bats, coyotes, foxes, skunks and raccoons.

Symptoms include fever, headache, excess salivation, muscle spasms, paralysis and mental confusion.

Doctors advise people to seek immediate medical attention after a bite or suspected bite.

There is no specific treatment for rabies. Once symptoms appear, it is nearly always fatal. A vaccine can prevent infection, doctors say.

Lesotho has been known to be endemic for rabies since the 1980s, but the epidemiology of the disease remains poorly understood due to limited sample submission, constrained diagnostic capabilities, and a lack of molecular epidemiological data, according to Andre Coetzer and other academics in a research paper published in 2021.

The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) says in countries where rabies is still present, “mass dog vaccination campaigns are the most cost-effective way to control the disease”.

“Indeed by vaccinating 70 percent of dogs in at-risk areas, rabies could be eradicated,” WOAH said.

In 2016, the WOAH funded the refurbishment of a government veterinary clinic and kennels in Lesotho to help them implement vaccination campaigns.

WOAH says like in many countries in southern Africa, rabies is endemic in Lesotho, where it causes mortality in dogs and occasionally affects people.

“The government is committed towards elimination of dog-mediated rabies by 2030,” says the organisation.

So bad is the situation that some countries are warning their citizens who intend to travel to Lesotho.

The Canadian Travel Clinics warns travellers to Lesotho that it is possible to get rabies in Lesotho if an infected animal bites or licks you.

“Make sure your shot is up to date, especially if you will spend time in remote areas or work with animals (in Lesotho),” reads a warning posted by the Canadian Travel Clinics.

“Always get immediate medical attention if you are bitten or scratched by an animal during your time in Lesotho, even if you have been vaccinated so that a healthcare professional can decide whether to recommend post-exposure rabies prophylaxis,” reads the warning.

Majara Molupe

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