Today, March 27, the Official Gazette of the Principality of Asturias (BOPA) published the new regulations that declares vaccination against rabies compulsory for all dogs residing in the Principality.
The resolution establishes that the First vaccination will be done when the dog is at least 3 months old and, mandatory, before the age of 6 months.
And for dogs older than 6 months, the regulation establishes a transitional period of six months, in order to make it easier for their owners to comply with the vaccination.
In all cases, revaccination will be mandatory before the end of the validity period of each vaccineas established in its technical marketing specification (that is, the product brochure).
On the contrary, except in the cases of community exchanges, anti-rabies vaccination will be voluntary for cats and ferrets.
From the Asturias College of Veterinarians, who have permanently “scientifically argued to the regional administration that rabies is recognized as a re-emerging disease, and that mass vaccination is the only correct method to interrupt the cycle of disease transmission to the man”, value “positively the regulatory changeas well as the effort of the Ministry of Rural Environment and, very particularly, of the current General Directorate of Livestock”.
However, they comment that “this first step (which is always the most important, since it begins a path), must be accompanied in our autonomous community, and sooner rather than later, by an annual anti-rabies vaccination of the disease, both for dogs, as for cats (and ferrets), because the The unstable geopolitical situation that we are experiencing in Europe constitutes a very important risk factor for the introduction of rabies in our country.”.
You can check the BOPA at the following link.
