SIBU: Coffee shop operators have been advised against wiping food scraps on the table onto the floor as doing so might invite stray dogs.
Assistant Minister of Local Government Datu Dr Penguang Manggil who gave the advice yesterday, said local councils should act tough against such practice.
He suggested that coffee shop operators use better ways to clean their tables of food scraps and other leftovers.
Meanwhile, Sibu Rural District Council (SRDC) chairman Sempurai Petrus Ngelai said they are closely monitoring stray dogs.
“If stray dogs are found roaming near coffee shops, we will remind the coffee shop operators that it is unhygienic to let strays roam near their premises,” he said.
At the same time, Sempurai urged residents in areas under SRDC’s jurisdiction to keep their pets within their house compound.
“As for stray dogs, the council will do the catching according to the directive from the Ministry of Local Government and Housing to ensure the safety of our dog unit,” he said.
Assistant Minister of Housing and Public Health Dr Annuar Rapaee has cautioned that rabies virus does not necessarily get transmitted to humans from dog bites, but from infected dogs’ saliva through open wounds on the skin. Dr Annuar thus emphasised that those who keep dogs (as pets) should be extra careful.
He also said infected dogs have a weird behaviour, which owners should watch out for. The number of rabies victims in the state had climbed to five, following the latest case where a 52-year-old man from Kampung Remun in Serian was detected to be infected by the rabies virus.
This was confirmed by Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah, who said laboratory tests had shown that the man, who had a history of being bitten by a dog in early May, had contracted the disease.