Four-Month-Old Puppy Bites Three in Jembrana, Tests Positive for Rabies

JEMBRANA, KOMPAS.com - A four-month-old puppy that bit three members of a family in Baler Bale Agung Village, Negara District, Jembrana Regency, Bali, has tested positive for rabies.

The diagnosis was confirmed after the puppy's brain samples were examined at the Denpasar Veterinary Center (BBVet) on Friday night (September 18, 2026).

In addition to the case in Baler Bale Agung, two other dog samples from different areas in Jembrana also tested positive for rabies.

These cases were found in Banjar Munduk, Pohsanten Village, Mendoyo District, and Banjar Moding Kaja, Candikusuma Village, Melaya District.

The Head of Livestock and Animal Health Division at the Jembrana Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food Service, I Gusti Ngurah Putu Sugiarta, said that out of five samples sent for testing, three came back positive.

"Out of five samples we sent to BBVet, three were confirmed positive for rabies," Sugiarta said when contacted on Sunday (September 20, 2026).

Puppy bites three family members

The case in Baler Bale Agung began when the family’s pet puppy bit three people in succession.

The victims are Ni Komang Ayu Suarniti (42) and her two children, Conradus Febatan Tri Sandi (15) and Dominika Sanyo Bayu (23).

Suarniti said the dog was their own pet, only four months old.

"The puppy is ours, four months old," she explained at her home.

She was first bitten on September 8, 2026, while bathing the puppy.

According to Suarniti, the puppy exhibited unusual behavior during the bath.

The dog was shivering and had scratch wounds, possibly from fighting with another dog.

"The mother dog is vaccinated, but my puppy had not yet received vaccination. There were bite marks on the puppy’s body that may have been from an attack by another dog earlier. I’m not exactly sure," she said.

On Saturday (September 12, 2026), Sandi was bitten again while trying to find fleas on the puppy.