Dog-cull ordered after rabies outbreak in China

A city in northern China killed more than 20,000 dogs over 10 days to deal with an outbreak of rabies.

The official Xinhua News Agency said today eight people have died from rabies since March in Hanzhong city in Shaanxi province and that there are two suspected cases in hospital.

It said that by Sunday, government teams under the direction of the police killed all dogs in rabies areas, including wild dogs, and dogs that had been in public spaces such as schools and parks.

Ye Zhoujun, who works at the news department of the Hanzhong propaganda office, said unregistered dogs were killed on the spot and buried somewhere else.