KARACHI: Eighteen people, including a three-year-old, were bitten by dogs in the Jumma Goth area in Bin Qasim Town on December 15.
According to the Indus Hospital staff, at least 12 of the 18 patients were bitten by a single dog.
“The information we have gathered from a dozen patients indicated involvement of a single street dog that’s highly suspected to be rabid. It attacked other animals as well in the locality and jumped into a house where it bit a child,” said Aftab Gohar, Manager Rabies Prevention and Training Centre at the Indus Hospital.
He told Dawn that the dog was reportedly foaming at the mouth, which was a classic signs of rabies.
According to him, all patients were seriously injured and immediately administered the life-saving rabies immunoglobulin and the vaccine following thorough cleaning of their wounds.
“This is a serious situation, requiring urgent attention and intervention of local authorities as rabies is 100 percent fatal disease. The fact that the dog bit other animals means that these infected animals are a constant threat to the community. Second, we don’t know whether all dog-bite victims received the required treatment. The status of the dog is also unclear though people tried to kill it,” Mr Gohar explained.
According to officials at the hospital, 70 to 80 new cases of dog-bite are being reported at the facility these days, which has seen seven rabies deaths so far.
Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2025.