Srinagar: Amid the surge in the trend of keeping cats as pets in Kashmir, the health experts have sounded alert over increasing cat-bite cases in the past four years owing to the vaccination gaps in the animals and their tendency to transmit zoonotic diseases among children.
Health experts say that Kashmir valley saw a surge in adoption of cats during and after the Covid-19 pandemic. They said that since 2020 there has been an exponential increase in cat bite cases among people particularly women and children.
Kashmir’s Anti Rabies Clinic (ARC) at Shri Maharaja Hari Singh (SMHS) Hospital reported the highest number of cat bite cases this year, with the total reaching 6,500 incidents so far, up from 4,200 cases in the same period last year.
Health officials said that the year 2025 has witnessed a 54% increase in the cat bite cases in comparison to 2024 and a substantial 450% increase in comparison to the year 2022 when only 1,178 cases were reported.
The clinic said that the surge is driven by a combination of higher pet ownership, seasonal stray cat activity and gaps in vaccination coverage. “We have been seeing more families adopting cats during (and post) the pandemic, but many are not completing the full rabies prophylaxis (take action to prevent disease),” said Dr Umar Kulsoom, head of the ARC.
Of the 6,500 cases this year, 78% of the victims are women and children under 15 years, highlighting the need for heightened awareness in households. “42% of the bites required post exposure rabies immunoglobulin (PEP) due to unknown vaccination status of the animal. The clinic administered 3,800 doses of rabies vaccine and 2,100 tetanus toxoid boosters in the same timeframe,” a statement by the clinic said.
Health officials issue guidelines
Health officials urged cat owners to ensure pets receive the mandatory two dose rabies vaccine schedule, maintain regular veterinary check ups and practice prompt wound cleaning with soap and running water for at least 15 minutes. They also reminded the public that any bite or scratch, even from a seemingly healthy cat, warrants immediate medical evaluation.
“The ARC plans to launch a targeted outreach campaign in partnership with local NGOs to boost vaccination drives in rural peripheries of Kashmir, aiming to bring down bite incidents over the next twelve months,” Kulsoom said.
The new fad has worried the health experts owing to the laxity on part of the families to vaccinate or deworm the pet cats.
Head of community medicine department at government medical college (GMC), Srinagar, Dr Salim Khan said that cat pet is the new hobby in the valley pointing out the responsibility the families need to fulfil to properly take care of the pets. “Since 2019, there has been a substantial increase in the number of cases coming to anti rabies clinic at SMHS Hospital, Srinagar due to cat exposure. The trend is growing in keeping cats as pets, especially the imported or Persian breeds. However, a considerable number of these pets are not taken care with regard to their personalised care including immunization, deworming and regular check up,” Khan said.
” The hygiene and disposal of wastes is an important public health concern as infected cats can transmit zoonotic diseases to humans, especially children. Cats also transmit rabies,” he cautioned.
“A pet deserves the same care as a child in a family”.
The cat bite cases have also put further strain on the ARC already burdened due to the increasing dog bite cases over the past few decades.
A staggering 2,12,968 people were bitten by dogs, mostly strays, from January 2022 to October 2025 in Jammu and Kashmir, chief minister Omar Abdullah informed the J&K Assembly in October.
The numbers reveal that around 4,700 people were bitten by dogs on an average every month at a rate of around 160 incidents every day. As many as 1,14,498 dog bite cases were reported in Kashmir valley and 98,470 cases in Jammu division during the period.–(HT)
