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B N W: Biafra Nigeria World News |
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Man's protection from animals
IT can be seen that the laws protecting animals in Nigeria are as recent as (1943) with the enactment of, Dogs Laws (Laws of Lagos State of Nigeria Vol. II) which is still in force to date. The law appears on the face of it to be appropriate for the protection of domestic animals, unfortunately the ridiculous penalties and punishments prescribed therein nullify the possible effect of this otherwise well-meaning enactment.
"My people perish for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). This Biblical statement is particularly relevant to the Nigerian situation. One wonders whether Nigerians know that there are in fact laws as regards man and animal interaction fashioned to protect both domesticated animals and wild animals alike. It would be appropriate to educate and enlighten the people on this vital issue.
Firstly, we would like to discuss domestic animals with particular reference to dogs. The reason being that dogs are the most common breed of domestic animals found within our household. To start with, hardly do people know that dogs should be licensed. Thus S.4 Part 2 Cap 36 Laws of Lagos State states that "every person in whose custody, charge or possession or in or upon whose house or premises any dog is found or seen, shall be deemed for the purpose of this part to keep such dog". S.5 further states that "any person who keeps such a dog over the age of six months without a licence issued by the authority for the area, township, district or place in which he resides authorising him to keep such dog shall be guilty of an offence.."
The authority is to issue free of charge, a suitable badge, differing each year...to be secured to the collar or other harness of the dog in respect of which a licence has been issued. They are also to keep a register of the name, address, and occupation of the person keeping each dog in respect of which a licence is issued. This is to ensure locating the dog's owner in case of its being found.
However, the penalties as regards licensing animals are very paltry, that is with regards to the fines imposed by the state government. Thus S.18 states that," any person who contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of Part 2 (which deals with licensing of dogs) of this law for which no special penalty is provided therein shall be liable on conviction, to a fine of N2.00." On the other hand, a dog or a pet could be suffering from interaction disease, which are diseases that are transmittable from animal to man. It is provided that "every owner of a diseased dog shall forthwith cause the same to be killed and should therefore immediately give notice to the authority".
Also if the dog is a "suspected dog" meaning any dog which has been bitten by or has been in contact with any diseased or suspected animal, or which has been otherwise exposed to the infection of rabies, such a dog is to be killed or securely tied or otherwise confined and the owner shall give notice to the authority. The authorities are to examine such a dog and upon the advice of a medical officer of health or a veterinary officer may cause any diseased dog to be killed and any suspected dog to be killed or otherwise be dealt with as may be considered necessary. Any person who contravenes the laws as regards diseased or suspected dogs which would mean failure to report to the authorities of any diseased dog in his custody and the like shall be liable to a fine of N200.00 or imprisonment for six months or both such fine and imprisonment as stated in S.19
As aforementioned, these penalties are outdated and as a result of inflation N200.00 or such sum would have seemed quite much in those days but it is now what we call "chicken change". The fact that these sums have remained as low as N2.00 would mean that the government is paying little or no attention to this aspect of the law. It should be noted that this is without regards to the endangered species (Control of International Trade and Traffic) Decree No.11 of 1985 or The Wildlife Preservation Laws of Lagos State. This inaction is inexcusable because, it leaves us Nigerians open and defenseless to possible damages, which may be caused by interaction diseases. What are these interaction diseases? Interaction diseases as earlier mentioned are diseases transmittable from animals to man, they are referred to as zoonotic diseases.
Zoonotic diseases are of a wide variety and could be deadly. They are challenges to all professions concerned with public health. However, veterinarians and other scientists are among the first line of defence of public health. It is believed that the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) was acquired from animals, monkeys in particular. Scientifically it has been shown that people with AIDS are more susceptible to zoonotic diseases such as tuberculosis, crytosopandial enteritis, food-borne salmonella infections, and other enteric organisms. It is also possible that other zoonotic diseases that are dormant such as: leptospirosis, plague, glanders meliodosis (psuedoglanders) may emerge in individuals affected by AIDS.
In Australia, a new disease has been reported in horses that also affect man, the cause is morbili-virus which is a measles-like virus that is related to canine distemper ( a disease caused by dogs, lions and cheetahs in East Africa) which causes disorderly state of mind and body) and rinderpest virus (a malignant and contagious disease of cattle). There are many emerging viral diseases that have a rodent or unknown animal host which has caused devastating fatal diseases in man in Africa and South America, for example Lassa fever, an arena virus serologically related to lymphocytic choriomeningitis (gerbils), and South American hemorrhagic diseases of Argentina and Bolivia. In Africa, Ebola fever and Marburg diseases (the latter a dormant monkey disease) have caused death in medical personnel. Crimean Congo hemorrhage fever has caused death in abattoir workers.
The death of veterinarians in Western USA from plague and reports of serious illness in veterinary technicians and cat owners has focused attention on both domestic and feral cats and the larger mountain or bobcats as carriers of this ancient disease. Dogs and other cannids are likewise involved in plague regions of the U.S.A. The involvement of cats since the 1970s is evidence of the dynamic nature of zoonotic diseases in changing environment. It can thus be seen that zoonotic diseases are rampant in the world at large; without any exclusion in Africa and in Nigeria in particular. There is little that is being done in this respect by the medical departments in our country.
However, control of zoonotic diseases and protection of the public health will become even more challenging as world population increases. When over-population and crowding occur, hygiene often cannot be maintained, which would lead to epidermis. Therefore surveillance and reporting of diseases is the first line of defence. Knowledge of the diseases is the first step in initiating a control programme.
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