By Leilanie G. Adriano
Staff reporter
LAOAG CITY—In time for the rabies awareness month, the Provincial Veterinary Office (PVet) hosted a quiz bee at the Provincial Auditorium on September 29, 2018.
Participated in by students from the different primary schools of the province, “One Health Quiz Show” is one of the highlights of Ilocos Norte’s intensified drive towards promoting a rabies-free province.
Based on record of the National Rabies Prevention and Control program, there are approximately 300 to 600 Filipinos who die of rabies every year.
Focusing on children who are highly vulnerable to dog bite, the quiz bee enables the children to become more aware of what to do in case they are bitten by a dog and to further encourage responsible dog ownership.
Running for six years now, Dr. Loid Valenzuela said the activity is a joint undertaking of the PVet in cooperation with the Provincial Health Office and the Department of Education.
As of the moment, the province of Ilocos Norte is eyeing for its official declaration as one of the zero rabies communities in the country.
With the cooperation of local communities and other stakeholders from the 21 towns and two cities of the province, Dr. Valenzuela hopes Ilocos Norte will soon be declared as rabies free province.