Srinagar: The stray dog menace is so common in Kashmir that perhaps it would not come as a surprise that 69,026 cases of people bitten by dogs (and also a few cases of bites by other animals), were registered at the Anti-Rabies Clinic at SMHS Hospital between the years 2004 and 2020 (till February).
As per the clinic’s data, in the past 11 months, between April 2019 and February 2020, 6,319 animal bite cases were registered at the clinic of which 3,975 were from Srinagar city. This, too, corroborates the common knowledge that Srinagar is the worst sufferer of the stray dog menace.
The highest number of bite cases was reported in the year 2015-16, in which 7,324 cases were treated at the Anti-Rabies Clinic of SMHS Hospital.
The lowest number of bite cases was registered in the year 2005-06, when only 817 persons were treated at the clinic.
The data shows that since the year 2007, animal bite cases (mostly dog bite cases) consistently increased in Kashmir valley.
While 1038 cases were registered in 2006-2007, the number had jumped to 6548 in 2016-2017. The previous year, 2014-2015, 4917 cases were treated at the clinic, but in the year before that, 2013-2014, 6041 cases were treated.
In 2018-19, 6397 cases were treated at the clinic, a number slightly less than the 6802 cases treated in 2017-2018.
In 2012-2013, 4489 cases were reported and in 2011-2012, 4154 cases were reported.
Rukiya Jan, one of the doctors at the Anti-Rabies Clinic of SMHS Hospital, told Kashmir Reader that dog bites cases are very common. “Sometimes we also treat persons who have been bitten by wild animals like leopard, bear and wolf,” she said.
She said that animal bites are classified into three categories depending on severity. In the first category are bites that occur during touching or feeding of animals. In such cases the skin is mostly intact and there is no exposure to infection. In the second category are bites that occur due to nibbling at uncovered skin, minor scratches or abrasions without bleeding. In such cases there is a “background exposure to infection”. Dr Jan said, “In these cases, we clean the wound and give anti-babies vaccination.”
“In the third category are single or multiple transdermal bites or scratches, contamination of mucous membrane or broken skin with saliva from animal licks. In these cases there is severe exposure to infection. We clean the wound, give anti-babies vaccination and rabies immunoglobulin (RIG) in such cases,” Dr Jan said.

ARIF RASHID