RABIES ALERT: 44-yr.-old mom in Lubuagan, Kalinga died 2 months after bitten by dog

Lubuagan, Kalinga – A 44-year-old woman in Lubuagan who was bitten by a dog passed away on February 13, 2025, almost two months after she got bitten by the animal.

The victim, as recounted by her husband to GURU Press Cordillera, was nipped by a dog on December 24, 2024. Said dog was not theirs, it just came to their ‘kubo’ on the farm. They leased the dog and waited for its owner to come and get it.

The biting happened when the victim went to feed the dog, but the latter suddenly snapped at her finger. The husband said his wife did not get an anti-rabies shot after the incident while the dog died three days after biting her.

The husband further narrated that his 44-year-old spouse did not feel any symptoms and went on with her daily work on the farm, not until February 11, 2025, when she felt a strong headache.

She sought medical assistance from a facility in Lubuagan on February 12, but she was immediately referred to Tuguegarao where they had to tie her hands and feet. The victim who is a mother of 7 was said to have experienced extreme headaches with seizures.

Around 8:00 a.m. on February 13, the 44-year-old passed away from the hospital. Her remains were taken home and was buried on February 16, 2025, in Dugnac.

What is the rabies virus?

Rabies virus spreads to people and animals through bites and scratches or direct contact with mucosa of the rabid animal. The World Health Organization noted that once the virus, after getting bitten or scratched, infects the central nervous system. Once symptoms appear, the fatality rate is mostly 100 percent.  Vaccination helps prevent infection from the rabies virus. The vaccination of animals can also reduce the spread of the virus.