There is little danger of contracting rabies from Sofia's stray dogs. Residents should not panic but should remain vigilant, the chief of the National Veterinary Medical Service Zheko Baychev told a news conference on August 18.

The news conference was given after a fox with rabies was found dead in the Sofia district of Vladaya on July 31. Only few days after the case Sofia regional veterinary service vaccinated animals in 326 areas in Vladaya and a three-km wide zone around the neighbourhood, Bulgarian news agency BTA reported. A total of 679 animals were vaccinated, of which 501 were dogs and 120 were cats, the director of Sofia regional veterinary service Anton Nenov said.

Mariela Pchelinska, from the press centre of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Supplies, told The Sofia Echo on August 18 that last year there were 40 cases of rabies.

Sofia municipal company Ecoravnovesie, which manages the city's stray dogs, has housed 33 street dogs from Vladaya district since the beginning of August. The dogs are spending 30 days in the Seslavtsi dog shelter for observation. So far no signs of rabies have been detected, the regional veterinary service said.

According to Baychev, 10 000 or 11 000 stray dogs currently live in Sofia, 9000 of which have been vaccinated.