'Stop Rabies' empowers communities toward a Rabies-free Phl

Stop Rabies, Boehringer Ingelheim’s global initiative, advances towards a rabies-free Philippines through education, responsible pet ownership, and local partnerships. The program expands to Puerto Galera, Marinduque, Laguna, and Bacolod, reducing rabies risk while protecting pets and empowering families.

Rabies remains a serious public health threat in the Philippines, causing 300–400 deaths and about 4 million animal bite cases each year. In the first two months of 2026, 17 human rabies cases were reported, 13 linked to bites from unvaccinated stray animals.

“Rabies is a preventable disease, yet it continues to claim lives across the Philippines,” said Dr. Michael Banawa, Head of Animal Health, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Philippines, Inc. “Through Stop Rabies, Boehringer Ingelheim partners with communities, local governments, and schools to educate families, vaccinate pets, and promote responsible ownership, fostering safer, healthier neighborhoods.”

This Rabies Awareness Month, Stop Rabies highlights the urgent need for education, vaccination, and responsible pet ownership to protect communities and pets.

Building a Rabies-Free Community in Puerto Galera

With more than 30 years of expertise in rabies prevention, Boehringer Ingelheim and the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC) launched Stop Rabies, a program delivering community-driven solutions to protect both people and animals through vaccination, education, and surveillance.

Since its launch in Puerto Galera, the initiative has carried out comprehensive prevention efforts, including school-based lessons on responsible pet ownership, post-exposure care, and free vaccination and neutering for dogs and cats.

Between 2022 and 2025, the program vaccinated thousands of animals, neutered hundreds annually, and provided education to schoolchildren, barangay officials, health workers, and dog catchers. In 2025 alone, it vaccinated 4,837 animals, neutered 294, and reached 588 students across four schools, highlighting its ongoing role in empowering communities and building local capacity to maintain a rabies-free environment.

Building on its achievements in Puerto Galera, Stop Rabies has expanded to additional communities, empowering local stakeholders and reinforcing rabies prevention efforts. In Marinduque, the program supported the provincial government’s mass pet vaccination and spay/neuter initiatives, collaborated with the local veterinary office, and provided rabies vaccine storage boxes to barangay health workers.

The program also advances prevention through information, education, and communication (IEC) campaigns in schools and communities. In Los Baños, Laguna, Stop Rabies partnered with the University of the Philippines Los Baños Veterinary Teaching Hospital to carry out mass vaccination and neutering, reaching over 8,000 students across 11 schools in March 2026. Similar efforts in Calauan, Laguna, involved collaboration with veterinary students and National Service Training Program participants.

In Bacolod City, Stop Rabies handed over IEC video materials to the city government and the Department of Health to incorporate rabies awareness into public school curricula. Collectively, these initiatives promote responsible pet ownership and strengthen rabies awareness in high-risk communities.

Boehringer Ingelheim’s Commitment to Safer, Healthier Communities

Beyond Stop Rabies, Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health Philippines supports local governments and organizations in combating rabies. In 2026, it donated vaccines to partners such as CCPI, San Juan LGU, Bounty Fresh Foundation, Filinvest, and Magic 89.9, and backed spay and neuter programs in Cavite and Pasig.

The company plans to expand Stop Rabies IEC campaigns to Bacolod, Victorias, and Laguna at the start of the next school year, while working with key stakeholders—including PHAP, RITM, BAI, UP College of Veterinary Medicine, and GARC—through the SD4G Stop Rabies Workshop to strengthen local capacity.

Under Boehringer Ingelheim’s SD4G framework, Stop Rabies supports the global Zero by 30 goal to eliminate dog-mediated human rabies deaths by 2030, promoting education, vaccination, neutering, and responsible pet care to foster healthier, safer, and rabies-free communities.