Amid an outcry that stray dogs are becoming a nuisance in Chipinge, the local authority has given the residents until Monday to vaccinate their pets and keep them inside fences or they will be shot, media reports say.
Although the stray dogs in question were only being blamed for biting people in the streets, the council has apparently been unsettled by concerned residents who are disgruntled by the vulnerability to the deadly rabies disease.
Already, Chipinge Town Council has placed posters in various parts of the small agrarian town, urging residents to take their dogs to the Veterinary Department for vaccination against rabies in a public campaign birthed by the troublesome stray dogs.
The posters encourage the residents to ensure that their dogs are vaccinated, kept in fences or tied on trees in the event that there were no fences.
Council chairperson Zivanai Kuchena told the regional Mirror that starting Tuesday, the local authority will shoot all the stray and unvaccinated dogs in the town.
This now implies that the residents will have to part ways with ZW$10 to have their dogs vaccinated.
According to Kuchena, police and officers from the local authority will do door-to-door inspections and shoot all dogs that do not comply with the new requirements.
Meanwhile, Dr Willard Chandavengerwa of the Veterinary Department said the campaign to have dogs vaccinated has received an overwhelming response from the residents who have been bringing their dogs for vaccination in large numbers.
He also added that officers from the Zimbabwe Republic Police will be responsible for the shooting of the unvaccinated and stray dogs.
mirror
Additional Reporting: Zwnews
