One dog rabies case reported last year, no human affected

Panaji: Mission Rabies reported one confirmed rabies-positive dog case in Goa, detected in Dec 2025 in Bardez. No human rabies cases were recorded in the state during the year.

“This was in Colvale, where someone reported the symptoms and the volunteers immediately sprang into action to contain the dog,” explained director, education, Mission Rabies, Dr Murugan Appupillai.


In the previous year, 2024, only three dog rabies cases were detected.

“No animal rabies-positive cases were detected in the six interior talukas of Goa since 2019. Sporadic animal-positive cases continue to be reported from certain border talukas; however, these were promptly and effectively contained. It was just one animal-positive case reported in Bardez taluka during 2025, which necessitated the implementation of a targeted campaign to eliminate any remaining circulating rabies virus in this area,” said Appupillai.

About 200 people are working for this campaign, including international volunteers, from Feb 20 to 27 for vaccination of pets and community dogs, sterilisation of dogs, rabies surveillance, and awareness activities. This campaign was inaugurated by Nilkant Halarnkar, the minister for fisheries and animal husbandry, on Friday at Mapusa.

Since Sep 2017, Goa largely avoided human rabies cases, earning a “rabies-controlled” status in 2021 after three consecutive years without a single death from the virus. The streak was broken by one case in 2023, but there were no fatalities in 2024 and 2025, and none so far this year.