TAIPING: A boy was bitten by a dog on his right calf while playing with his friends at Kampung Air Kuning here yesterday.
His aunt, Salamiah Abu Bakar, 50, said the victim, five-year-old Muhammad Raqib Rayyan Mohammad Nazri, was playing near her home when he was attacked by a dog at 1.30 pm on Thursday
She said she was at home when she heard Muhammad Raqib and his friends screaming as they fled from two dogs that were chasing them.
“While running, Muhammad Raqib fell and was bitten by one of the dogs. I screamed and the dog ran into the nearby forest area.
“I took Muhammad Raqib to the Changkat Jering Health Clinic before being referred to the Taiping Hospital to clean the wound on his right leg,” she said when met at the victim’s home in Kampung Air Kuning here today.
Salamiah said the relevant authorities should take immediate action for fear that the dog would attack other children playing in the area and cause a rabies outbreak.
She said during the incident, Muhammad Raqib was being looked after by his grandmother Ummi Kalsom Jusuh, 72, while his parents were at work.
Meanwhile, Maziah Md Lazim, 43, said she received a phone call from her mother Ummi Kalsom about the incident and rushed back home.
“I was crying and shocked with what happened to my youngest son,” said the mother who works in a factory in Ipoh and has two other children, aged 14 and 17.
Maziah said Muhammad Raqib was now receiving follow-up treatment until the wound healed and was also given an anti-rabies injection at the Changkat Health Clinic.
Taiping Acting District Police Chief Supt Razlam Ab Hamid when contacted confirmed receiving a police report from the victim’s family and the incident has been referred to the Veterinary Services Department for further action.
On Jan 14, Mukim Taiping and Bukit Gantang in Larut Matang and Selama districts were gazetted as rabies-infected areas following a report on Dec 31, last year, when two family members at Taman Sri Kota Phase 2 in Taiping were bitten by their pet dog. – Bernama