Government issues alert over rabies in Hwaseong

By Park Si-soo

A case of rabies was confirmed near Seoul for the first time in seven months, prompting the government to issue a warning against the highly-contagious disease.

The Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MIFAFF) said Monday it had confirmed the case at a cattle farm in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, roughly 30 kilometers south of Seoul. A cow died of the disease, the ministry said.

Including the case, Korea has had three cases of rabies this year alone. The ministry found 18 cases of rabies in 2009 and 10 cases in 2010.

Officials said the latest case took place just 10 kilometers away from another cattle farm that was hit by the disease in April.

“We suspect that the cow was infected with the disease after contact with wild animals,” a MIFAFF official said. “Farming animals should be kept in safe places in order to prevent them from being infected with the disease. More importantly, farmers should report animals behaving strangely to the government immediately.”

Rabies is a potentially lethal disease which causes acute inflammation of the brain. It is can be passed from animals such as dogs, cows or badgers to humans mostly through bites.