23 September 2008
Millsboro, DE
VACCINATING U.S. PETS CAN HELP REDUCE RABIES IN AFRICA, SAVE LIVES
“Help Here. Change There.” Theme of Vaccination Campaign
Millsboro, Del., September 23, 2008 – Fifty years of mandatory rabies immunization and control in the United States have virtually eradicated the risk of humans contracting the deadly virus from domestic pets. Now, veterinarians can tell American pet owners about an opportunity to fight the disease in Africa through vaccinations administered in this country.
The project, Afya Serengeti, which means “Health for Serengeti” in Swahili, is seeking to control rabies in this region of Tanzania by vaccinating domestic dogs, responsible for more than 8 out of 10 cases of the deadly disease, with children suffering the greatest impact. To support this lifesaving work, Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, a global animal health company, is donating a dose of its rabies vaccine for every dose of its Continuum® canine or feline vaccine given to pets through the end of 2008. Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health has committed up to 250,000 doses to the project. The company is also a sponsor of World Rabies Day on September 28, 2008, a global initiative to address rabies prevention and control.
“It is amazing that such a simple and relatively inexpensive act such as vaccination can break the chain of a fatal disease like rabies,” said Laurel Leach, DVM, from the Beverly Oaks Animal Hospital and Emergency Animal Clinic in Sherman Oaks, Calif. “It is such a preventable tragedy. Every time I vaccinate a dog here in California, I know that, through Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health, I am vaccinating another dog in the Serengeti. It’s a way to help improve the quality of life for dogs and people on the other side of the globe.”
In Africa, around 25,000 people die from the disease each year, most of them children. Kept as both pets and working animals, domestic dogs are an essential part of everyday life in the Serengeti yet they account for 84.2% of rabies cases. Controlling the disease in household dogs means reducing deaths from rabies in children. Afya Serengeti is a highly successful rabies control project that ensures widespread vaccination of domestic dogs in regions where many people cannot afford an annual rabies shot. A vaccination zone has been set up around the Serengeti National Park with regular clinics where dog owners can bring their pets to be registered, vaccinated and marked with a plastic collar to signify their protection from rabies.
Afya Serengeti has already had a massive impact in the Serengeti region of Tanzania. In its second year of operation, the number of people needing hospital care for bites from rabid dogs dropped by 82% and the control of rabies in domestic dogs has prompted the resurgence of the once-endangered African wild dogs in the park—a major attraction for wildlife tourists.
This year, Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health has increased its support in the fight to eradicate rabies by providing a new Land Rover to help with rabies vaccine distribution to the Afya Serengeti team. The company will also host events featuring African food at a number of its U.S. locations to raise awareness of the company’s support of World Rabies Day and its commitment to rabies eradication.
Dr. Sarah Cleaveland from the Centre of Tropical Medicine at the University of Edinburgh, UK, who founded and leads the Afya Serengeti project says, “We are immensely proud of the success of our initiative in Tanzania. This is a campaign that has let people get on with their everyday lives by helping to eradicate one of the everyday threats. It’s not about famine or war or any kind of disaster, it’s about making everyday life safer in the Serengeti, especially for children.”
Veterinarians and pet lovers who want to do more for the project can also visit the Web site, www.afya.org, to make a donation, learn more about the issue and view videos about the impact of the project on the Serengeti region.
About Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health
Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health is a leader in research and dedicated to the development, production and marketing of innovative, high-quality animal-health products, such as Continuum®, Galaxy®, Eclipse®, Zubrin®, Vetsulin®, Panacur®, Tri-Heart® Plus, and Leventa®. For more information visit the following Web sites: www.continuum3.com, www.vetsulin.com, www.triheartplus.com and www.leventa.com.
Continuum, Eclipse, Galaxy, Leventa, Panacur, Tri-Heart, Vetsulin, and Zubrin are registered trademarks of Intervet Inc., Schering-Plough Animal Health, or an affiliate.
In addition to animal-health products, Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health provides services through its wholly-owned subsidiary HomeAgain®, a leader in companion animal identification and lost pet recovery.
For more information about Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health visit the following Web sites: www.intervetusa.com, www.spah.com and www.homeagain.com.
About Schering-Plough Corporation
Schering-Plough is an innovation-driven, science-centered global health care company. Through its own biopharmaceutical research and collaborations with partners, Schering-Plough creates therapies that help save and improve lives around the world. The company applies its research-and-development platform to human prescription and consumer products as well as to animal health products. Schering-Plough’s vision is to “Earn Trust, Every Day” with doctors, patients, customers and other stakeholders served by its colleagues around the world. The company is based in Kenilworth, N.J., and its Web site is www.schering-plough.com.
© 2008 Intervet Inc. All rights reserved.
Contact
John Janelli
Marketing Manager, Companion Animal
Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health
29160 Intervet Lane
Millsboro, DE 19966-0318
Phone: 302-934-4388
Fax: 302-934-4269
Email: john.janelli@sp.intervet.com
