Atlanta – In the wake of a devastating earthquake, Dr. Max Millien, the head veterinarian in Haiti, had his hands full. He was working to eradicate rabies in a country that leads the Americas for the deadly human and animal disease.
Dr. Millien will be available for interviews during the annual convention of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) held in Atlanta, Georgia, from July 31 through August 3. He’ll be speaking at the Global Opportunities Workshop at 3-3:50 p.m. August 1 and he’s available for interview with journalists on request.
Dr. Millien will be talking about Haiti’s 10 year plan to eradicate rabies. Of the 29 human cases of rabies in the region since 2006, 11 were Haitians. The primary reservoir for rabies in Haiti is dogs and cats.
Haiti had been making great progress. Vaccination of dogs and cats in the country against rabies jumped from under 60,000 in 2003 to over 355,000 in 2008. But the country also has a substantial problem with stray dogs, which are potential carriers, and this was a problem exacerbated by the earthquake. Many pet dogs lost their owners, so the population of strays grew.
For more information, visit www.avmaconvention.org.
The AVMA, founded in 1863, is one of the oldest and largest veterinary medical organizations in the world. More than 80,000 member veterinarians worldwide are engaged in a wide variety of professional activities.