Five Yobe residents hospitalised after rabies-infected dog attack

Five residents of Malam Matari community, on the outskirts of Damaturu, are receiving medical treatment after being bitten by a dog confirmed to have rabies, in an incident that has raised fresh concerns over public health and animal disease control in Yobe State. The attack also affected livestock, prompting the Yobe State Pilot Livestock Development Programme to deploy its Rapid Response Team to contain the outbreak and prevent further spread of the virus. The Programme Manager, Dr Bulama Maina Yaro, who supervised the emergency operation, said the five victims were responding well to treatment and had commenced the recommended five-dose post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) vaccination.