EXPLAINER: What are dog owners required to do under the Anti-Rabies Act?

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Getting yourself a dog comes with responsibilities for dog owners beyond providing food and shelter.

Under Republic Act No. 9482, or the Anti-Rabies Act of 2007, pet owners must have their dogs vaccinated against rabies. They also need to register them with authorities, keep them under control, and take specific steps when their dogs bite someone.

The law also imposes fines on owners who fail to comply with certain requirements. With it, lawmakers to prevent the spread of rabies and promote responsible pet ownership,

READ ALSO: Cebu City rabies vaccine stock falls below herd immunity target

Here is what dog owners need to know.

Keep dogs vaccinated and registered

The law requires all pet owners to have their dogs regularly vaccinated against rabies.

Owners must also maintain a registration card containing records of vaccinations given to their dogs.

Dogs are likewise required to be registered. Local government units are tasked with ensuring that dogs are properly immunized, registered, and issued corresponding dog tags.

Dog owners, do not let your dogs roam freely

Owners are required to maintain control over their dogs.

Under the law, dogs cannot be allowed to roam streets or other public places without a leash. They must either be leashed when outside or kept within the owner’s house or fenced premises.

Cebu City Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries head Dr. Alice Utlang said that owners who fail to comply with the leash requirement can be fined ₱500 for every incident.

The law defines a stray dog as one that has left its owner’s premises and is no longer under the owner’s control.

What if your dog bites someone?

The law requires owners to report a dog-biting incident to concerned officials within 24 hours.

The dog must also be placed under observation by a government or private veterinarian.

The owner is further required to immediately assist the person bitten by the dog. They need to shoulder the medical and other incidental expenses arising from the victim’s injuries.

Owners who refuse to have their dog placed under observation after a bite can be fined ₱10,000.

If an owner refuses to have the dog placed under observation and to shoulder the medical expenses of the person bitten, the fine increases to ₱25,000, according to Utlang.

The law also provides that an owner who refuses to have a dog vaccinated against rabies is liable for the cost of vaccinating both the dog and the person bitten by it.

Can an unregistered or stray dog be impounded?

The law directs local government units (LGUs) to impound unregistered, stray or unvaccinated dogs. They need to be kept in designated dog pounds.

An impounded dog that is not claimed within three days may be placed for adoption to qualified persons. When feasible, an animal-welfare organization may assist.

If adoption is not possible, the law allows the dog to be disposed of in a manner authorized by the Animal Welfare Act.

Owners of impounded dogs are also required to pay the applicable fee before their dogs can be released. The law sets the fine at not less than ₱500 but not more than ₱1,000.

What about repeatedly impounded dogs?

The law also addresses dogs that repeatedly end up in the pound.

A dog that has been impounded three times can only be released after being spayed or neutered. Its owner is required to shoulder the costs.

The law also directs government agencies and LGUs to promote responsible pet ownership, including spaying and neutering.

LGUs are tasked to provide an incentive system under which owners of spayed or neutered dogs may receive subsidized or discounted pet registration fees.

Owners have responsibilities beyond their own pets

The law places broader responsibilities on LGUs.

These include enforcing dog registration and vaccination, controlling stray dogs, establishing and maintaining dog pounds, allocating funds for rabies-control activities, and establishing veterinary offices in provinces, cities, and first-class municipalities.

LGUs are also required to enact additional ordinances supporting the national rabies-control program. That can include regulation of the practice locally known as “tandok.”

Pet shops are likewise required to post information about rabies and responsible pet ownership.

What does the government have to provide?

The Anti-Rabies Act also assigns responsibilities to national government agencies.

The Department of Agriculture is tasked with, among other things, ensuring an adequate supply of animal rabies vaccines and conducting free anti-rabies vaccination of dogs, prioritizing high-risk depressed areas.

The Department of Health (DOH) is tasked with ensuring an adequate supply of human anti-rabies vaccines in animal-bite treatment centers. It also needs to provide post-exposure treatment, at minimum expense, to individuals bitten by animals suspected of being rabid.

The DOH also needs to provide free pre-exposure treatment to high-risk personnel such as laboratory workers, veterinarians, animal handlers, and vaccinators.

The Department of Education is required to strengthen rabies education in schools. It may integrate responsible pet ownership into relevant elementary and high school subjects.

There are also heavier penalties

The law imposes penalties beyond those involving registration, vaccination, and dog bites.

Anyone found guilty of trading dogs for meat faces a fine of at least ₱5,000 per dog and imprisonment of one to four years.

Using electrocution as a method of euthanasia carries the same imprisonment range and a fine of at least ₱5,000 per act.

The law also provides that a foreigner found guilty of a violation covered by its provisions shall be deported after serving the sentence.

For ordinary dog owners, however, the central obligations are straightforward: keep the dog vaccinated and registered, keep it under control, prevent it from roaming, and act immediately and responsibly if it bites someone.

The law treats these not simply as recommendations for pet owners but as responsibilities backed by specific penalties.

Disclaimer: The comments uploaded on this site do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of management and owner of Cebudailynews. We reserve the right to exclude comments that we deem to be inconsistent with our editorial standards.