With the Nilgiris being “rabies-free” since 2013, the Worldwide Veterinary Service (WVS-India) has outlined strategies that could be implemented in other districts to replicate their success in bringing down rabies-deaths among people and animals across Tamil Nadu.
“The Nilgiris having a natural border of forests certainly helps in ensuring that animals from surrounding districts, which may have rabies, do not infect animals here,” said Nigel Otter, chairman of WVS-India, an organisation (headquartered in the United Kingdom) implementing Animal Birth Control (ABC) programmes through sterilisation of street dogs.
Dr. Ilona Otter, proprietor of Otter Animal Health Solutions said that an intersectional committee for a ‘rabies-free Nilgiris’ was formed in 2013, headed by then collector, Archana Patnaik, in an initiative organized by the Pasteur Institute of India, Coonoor and WVS-India.
Dr. Otter said that through continuous sterilisation of street dogs in the Nilgiris since 2010, that the stray dog population has also been controlled in the district. Nigel Otter estimates that WVS conducts at least 6,000 to 7,000 annual sterilisations each year on average. Another key strategy has been ensuring the vaccination of all stray dogs in the Nilgiris, with rabies vaccines also being made free of cost at the WVS-India clinic.
“WVS India is also developing a ‘rabies-controlled buffer-zone’ to the Mettupalayam-Karamadai area of the Coimbatore rural district. This includes ABC-ARV work as well as booster vaccination drives. In September 2025, WVS-India team vaccinated 2,297 dogs in that area. We have collaborated there with the municipalities and panchayats,” said Nigel Otter in a statement.
Dr. Ilona said that increasing coverage of rabies vaccines across the State including rural areas and ensuring dog owners have access to clinics for vaccinating and sterilising their animals are key factors that will help drive down rabies deaths across Tamil Nadu. Quoting statistics from the Department of Public Health, Tamil Nadu, which analysed rabies deaths between 2018 and 2022, Dr. Ilona said that the statistics showed 70 percent of rabies deaths were in rural areas while 40 percent of the deaths were caused by pet dog bites.
“Rabies in dogs is prevented with annual vaccination of dogs. This has to include all dogs, starting with the owned dogs – the low hanging fruit. There are multiple reasons why thousands of dog owners in small towns and rural areas, or those living in cities but belonging to low-income households, do not have access to annual rabies vaccination for their dogs. These reasons have to be understood and systems created to overcome the existing barriers,” said Dr. Otter, adding that while sterilization was a “supportive tool for rabies control,” that rabies control in dogs has to always be based on annual vaccination with all owned dogs being vaccinated annually.
Published – November 18, 2025 06:06 pm IST
