Nearly 60,000 dogs were put down in Maoming and Lianjiang in western Guangdong in a campaign to eradicate rabies, the Guangzhou-based New Express reported Wednesday.

Areas within a 2.5km diameter where human and animal rabies have been found are marked as infected, according to Guangdong provincial health authorities.

All dogs without a license or vaccination would be put down immediately in infected areas, authorities said.

In Maoming where rabies was long rooted, 3,385 urban administrative workers were deployed to put down 6,859 dogs. In Lianjiang, a total of 52,614 dogs were put down. Farmers are in the habit of keeping dogs as home guards, but they are unwilling to pay for vaccination.

Health officials think it unnecessary to put down all dogs in less infected areas, while agriculture officials recommend the opposite, saying even vaccination cannot ensure 100 percent safety.

The issue has sparked heated debates on the Internet. People supporting the campaign say human life is the first priority while those against it insist people should respect all forms of life.

(Shenzhen Daily July 24, 2003)