An incident involving a rabid cat attacking residents in the Azrou neighborhood of Ait Melloul has sparked widespread controversy. The neighborhood residents took to the streets demanding the collection of stray cats fearing infection from rabies after one such case was reported and a subsequent attack on women and children in the neighborhood.
Idriss, a resident and father of one of the victims of the rabid cat, stated that he rushed his daughter to the hospital for vaccination against rabies. However, he expressed concern about the spreading of the disease among other cats and dogs in the neighborhood, especially in areas near the Sous River. Like others in the neighborhood, Idriss called for intervention by authorities to collect animals that are also likely to have contracted this deadly disease, to prevent potential attacks.
The community services of Ait Melloul responded to the residents’ call on Friday and collected about 14 cats. Photos shared on their Facebook page show a metal cage with a number of stray cats. However, this sparked controversy among animal rights activists in Ait Melloul who were displeased by the municipality’s approach to the issue. They feared the municipality’s method of dealing with the cats and expressed concerns about their fate. One of them commented on the municipality’s Facebook post, questioning why the municipality isn’t vaccinating and treating the sick animals instead of gathering them, predicting their fate would most likely be merciless killing.
