World Rabies Day 2026: Stronger Together

28 September 2026 | World Rabies Day

Rabies is one of the world's oldest known diseases—and one of its most preventable. Every year on 28 September, World Rabies Day brings people, communities, healthcare professionals, veterinarians and governments together to raise awareness and strengthen efforts to eliminate rabies.

The theme for World Rabies Day 2026 is “Stronger Together.” The theme emphasizes that rabies elimination requires cooperation across human health, animal health and communities.

What is rabies?

Rabies is a viral disease that affects the nervous system. It can spread from infected animals to humans, commonly through bites or scratches. Once clinical symptoms appear, rabies is almost invariably fatal. However, rabies is preventable through vaccination and timely post-exposure care.

Dogs are responsible for the great majority of human rabies infections worldwide. Rabies remains present in more than 150 countries and territories and causes an estimated 59,000 human deaths each year, with Africa and Asia carrying much of the burden.

Why World Rabies Day matters

World Rabies Day is more than an awareness day. It is an opportunity to remind everyone that preventing rabies requires action before and after exposure.

Important measures include:

• Vaccinating dogs to stop transmission at its source.
• Educating communities, especially children, about safe behaviour around animals.
• Washing bite or scratch wounds promptly with soap and water.
• Seeking medical attention immediately after a possible exposure.
• Ensuring timely access to post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) when indicated.
• Strengthening surveillance and cooperation between medical and veterinary services.

WHO describes rabies elimination as a One Health challenge because human, animal and environmental health are interconnected.

Stronger Together

The 2026 theme recognizes that no single group can eliminate rabies alone.

Communities can spread accurate information and promote responsible animal care.

Pet owners can ensure that dogs are appropriately vaccinated.

Veterinary professionals play a central role in animal vaccination and rabies surveillance.

Healthcare workers provide essential assessment and post-exposure treatment.

Governments and public-health organizations can strengthen vaccination programmes, surveillance systems, legislation and access to treatment.

When these efforts work together, prevention becomes stronger and more sustainable.

What should you do after an animal bite?

A possible rabies exposure should always be taken seriously.

Immediately wash the wound thoroughly with soap and plenty of water and seek medical care as soon as possible. A healthcare professional can assess the exposure and determine whether rabies post-exposure treatment is needed.

Do not wait for symptoms to appear. Once symptoms develop, rabies is almost always fatal, which makes prevention and timely treatment critical.

Protect animals, protect people

Vaccinating dogs is one of the most important tools for preventing dog-mediated human rabies. Protecting animal health therefore directly protects human health.

World Rabies Day reminds us that rabies does not have to be inevitable. Through vaccination, education, responsible animal care, effective surveillance and timely medical care, human deaths from rabies can be prevented.

A shared responsibility

World Rabies Day 2026 — Stronger Together.

One community.
One Health.
One shared goal: a world free from human deaths caused by dog-mediated rabies.

Let us educate, vaccinate, prevent and act together—because when communities, health professionals and animal-care systems work together, we become Stronger Together against rabies.

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