Free Anti-Rabies Vaccination in Gachibowli — and How to Register Your Dog with GHMC
Every 15 August we vaccinate pets against rabies free in Gachibowli. What the shot protects against, and the GHMC dog registration it lets you complete.
Every year on 15 August, we vaccinate pets against rabies free of charge at our Gachibowli store. Last August we vaccinated more than a hundred animals in a day, with several veterinarians and their assistants working through the queue. It is open to anyone who turns up — you do not have to be a customer, and there is nothing to buy.
Our team has run this drive every Independence Day for six years.
This page explains what that vaccination is for, and what to do with the certificate afterwards — because in Hyderabad, it is the document that lets you complete something the city legally requires.
Why rabies, and why only rabies
The drive covers anti-rabies vaccination only. That is a deliberate choice, not a limitation.
Rabies is effectively always fatal once symptoms appear, and almost entirely preventable before that. India carries roughly 36% of the world's dog-mediated human rabies deaths, and the country has committed to eliminating dog-mediated rabies by 2030 under the National Action Plan for Rabies Elimination. The World Health Organization is unambiguous about the mechanism: mass vaccination of dogs is what stops rabies at its source, not treatment after a bite.
World Rabies Day falls on 28 September every year. The 2026 theme is “Stronger Together” — the argument being that education, vaccination, surveillance and law only work as one system. A free shot in a shop doorway is a small part of that system, but it is the part a neighbourhood store can actually do.
Other vaccines — DHPPi, leptospirosis, the feline combinations — matter too, and we give them in the clinic year round. They are not part of the free drive because rabies is the one with a public health case attached, and the one the city asks you to prove.
The part most owners miss: GHMC registration is compulsory
Registering your dog with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation is not optional. It is required, and the fee is Rs 50, renewed annually. Penalties cited for non-compliance run substantially higher.
Applications go through pet.ghmc.gov.in or the MyGHMC app. You will need:
- a recent vaccination certificate
- the date of the last anti-rabies vaccination, and the veterinarian's details
- an NOC from at least two neighbours
- address proof — electricity bill, water bill, Aadhaar or driving licence
- your pet's name, breed, sex, colour, age and identifying marks
The application goes to the veterinary assistant director's office for verification. Once approved, your pet gets a unique identification number and a metal token.
Look at the first two items on that list. The free drive hands you exactly what the city asks for. Every animal vaccinated at our drive leaves with a certificate carrying the date and the vet's details, which is the part people most often cannot produce when they sit down to register.
What to bring on the day
- Your pet, on a lead or in a carrier. Cats and small animals in carriers, please — a waiting area full of dogs is not a good day for a frightened cat.
- Any previous vaccination card, if you have one. If you have lost it or never had one, come anyway; we will start a fresh record.
- Patience. More than a hundred animals came through last year and we take them in order.
If your pet is unwell, pregnant, or very young, speak to one of the vets before joining the queue rather than after. There are good reasons to delay a vaccination, and a two-minute conversation at the door is how we find them.
If you cannot wait until August
The drive is once a year; rabies is not. Our vet clinic at the Gachibowli shop is not running at the moment, so please ask your own vet for the anti-rabies vaccination and the certificates GHMC needs. If your registration is lapsing now, it is not worth waiting ten months to save the cost of a single shot against a penalty that is very much larger.
Related: our veterinary clinic in Gachibowli.
Reviewed by Dr Rafi Suhail, resident veterinarian, Cuddle Paws Co, Gachibowli.
Sources: GHMC pet registration portal (pet.ghmc.gov.in); World Health Organization on rabies; National Action Plan for Rabies Elimination; Global Alliance for Rabies Control.
