Stray Dog in Rustavi Confirmed Positive for Rabies

A stray dog in Rustavi has tested positive for rabies. The National Food Agency says it is necessary to identify persons who had contact with the dog.

According to the agency, it received a report about a stray dog taken from Rustavi to a veterinary clinic in Tbilisi, where it died. The citizen explained that they found the dog in Leonidze Square in Rustavi on October 8. The same day they took it to one clinic, and then transferred it to another clinic. At the same time, information about a missing dog was being spread on social media and in the media.

A study conducted at the State Laboratory of Agriculture confirmed rabies in the dog's pathological material (examination report No. 10367/1).

The agency calls on residents of Rustavi that anyone who had contact in Rustavi, in Leonidze Square and the surrounding area, from September 30 to October 9 with a black dog that had a rope tied around its neck should immediately contact the relevant public health service or a medical facility for consultation and to determine further action.

According to the agency, dozens of people had contact with the rabid dog. Among them are staff of veterinary clinics in Rustavi and Tbilisi. The clinics in question are "Zoopla" on Kostava Street in Tbilisi, "Vethouse" at 70 Mictkevich Street, and "Vet City" in Rustavi. The staff have already contacted a medical facility, while disinfection work and other measures provided for by legislation were carried out at these clinics.

The agency urges citizens to promptly contact a rabiologist.