This year, the STOP Rabies program aims to vaccinate 6,500 dogs and cats in the locality from April 20 to April 27, 2024. Boehringer Ingelheim employees and sixty veterinary students from Nong Lam University will assist with the rabies vaccination campaign and promote prevention against the disease. Since 2021, this initiative has successfully vaccinated 26,500 dogs and cats.

Experts and representatives from the Department of Animal Health, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nong Lam University, and Boehringer Ingelheim Vietnam also convened in a “Joining Hands To Eliminate Rabies” roundtable discussion. Various strategies to prevent rabies in Vietnam, enhance the effectiveness of rabies prevention measures, promote mass vaccination of dogs and cats were discussed. With the increasing risk of exposure to the disease, the need for strong collaboration between public and private sectors were re-emphasized to advance the progress of dog-mediated rabies elimination.  

Associate Professor Doctor Le Quang Thong, from Nong Lam University, said: “It’s important to enhance vaccination rates, education and monitoring to establish herd immunity and elevate community awareness. Veterinary universities play a crucial role in this endeavor through their effective contributions in education, training, and scientific research.”

Vietnam’s Government aims to eliminate human deaths from dog-transmitted rabies by 2030 through the 2022-2030 national program for rabies control and elimination.

With over 30 years of experience working in rabies prevention and management, Boehringer Ingelheim continues to contribute its expertise and heritage to the rabies elimination efforts that are already taking place in Southeast Asia and around the world, to deliver on-the-ground solutions across three key pillars – vaccination, education, and surveillance. In 2023, Boehringer Ingelheim supported a whitepaper titled “Moving towards a rabies-free Southeast Asia” to encourage regional attention and local action to ensure sustainable, on-the-ground solutions are implemented to progress towards the elimination of rabies in the region.

“Through vaccinations, we aim to eliminate rabies at its source and halt the virus's circulation. Vaccination is a cost-effective human disease prevention method. Our ongoing rabies initiative in Duc Hue aims to raise awareness, inspire communities to combat rabies, and secure local to regional commitment for resource allocation. We support the goal of Vietnam’s Government to vaccinate 70% of dogs and cats in Vietnam's in the term 2022-2025.”, said Dr. Torsten Hardge, Head of Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Vietnam.

Dr. Torsten Hardge emphasized: “By collaborating with local authorities, strategic partners, experts, and pet owners to prioritize rabies vaccination, education, and monitoring, we can make meaningful advances to eliminate rabies and contribute to better health outcomes for animals and humans.”