Proudly Pro Vaccine

While controversy regarding vaccines rages on social media, the truth is many fatal and catastrophically life altering diseases have been nearly eradicated over the last century or so by vaccines. This is true of both human and veterinary medicine.

"Vaccines are products designed to trigger protective immune responses and prepare the immune system to fight future infections from disease-causing agents. Vaccines stimulate the immune system's production of antibodies that identify and destroy disease-causing organisms that enter the body." This statement is directly quoted from the article "Vaccinations" on the American Veterinary Medicine Association's website (avma.org). Anything else people try to tell you about vaccines is most likely fiction.

I said nearly eradicated in my opening statement because the diseases are still out there and will readily infect unvaccinated souls. In my early career, all canine combination vaccines, referred to as DHLPP, included a Leptospirosis fraction and treating a pet with the actual disease was rare. In the 90s, concerns were raised that the Leptospirosis fraction of those vaccines was causing significant severe reactions. The pharmaceutical industry responded by separating the Leptospirosis into its own vaccine. Consequently, many pets were no longer being vaccinated for Leptospirosis and cases of pets being hospitalized with it increased. Even with treatment, many of these pets die. Leptospirosis is a bacterium that damages the liver and kidneys and will infect humans also.

Most pets tolerate vaccines with little or no reaction. Mild side effects may include soreness and swelling at the vaccination site, low fever and decreased appetite and activity. These signs usually fade away after a few hours.

Allergic reactions to vaccines are less common but potentially life threatening. These pets should be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible. Symptoms will include swelling of the muzzle, face, neck or eyes, hives, persistent vomiting or diarrhea or collapse. Most pets who have an allergic reaction usually respond readily to treatment.

Cats will sometimes have a rare but serious reaction that results in the growth of malignant tumors at the vaccination site. It will appear as a small firm swelling under the skin. It should start to disappear in a couple weeks. If it persists or gets bigger, see your veterinarian.

Why do we recommend a series of vaccines in our puppies and kittens? A healthy canine or feline mother will share some of their immunities with their offspring through colostrum. This is the fluid her teats make right after the babies are born and before they start producing milk. If newborns suckle as soon as possible after birth, the maternal antibodies they drink will help protect them from disease. Unfortunately, the age at which those maternal antibodies fade away can be different, even among littermates. When infants are vaccinated while those antibodies are still present, their immune systems may not respond appropriately. If those antibodies have faded away, the puppies or kittens immune systems respond readily thus building up their own immunity.

For all our pets, Rabies vaccines are not negotiable. Rabies vaccines are required by law because any mammal is at risk, including humans. Once any mammal starts showing symptoms, the disease is fatal 99% of the time. The symptoms can be very subtle. Early signs show up as changes in behavior. A formerly shy pet is now aggressive, or a formerly fractious pet is now unusually affectionate. Wild animals with rabies may lose their natural fear of humans. Wild animals that are usually active at night will come out during the daytime when rabid. As the disease gets worse, pets show symptoms like excessive drooling, difficulty swallowing, staggering, paralysis and seizures. There is no treatment!

As with human medicine, there are many more vaccines available than there used to be. Core vaccines are considered essential and address highly contagious, life threatening diseases. For dogs, we are talking about canine distemper, canine parvovirus and canine hepatitis. We rarely see distemper due to diligent vaccine protocols. Distemper is fatal once you see the characteristic "bubblegum seizures", until then it can look like any upper respiratory virus. Parvovirus and hepatitis are extremely debilitating and usually require hospitalization to survive.

For cats, the concerns are feline panleukopenia, feline rhinotracheitis and feline calicivirus. Rhinotracheitis and calicivirus are severe upper respiratory diseases. While panleukopenia may start looking respiratory, it goes on to destroy blood cells of any kind by severely damaging the bone marrow. Many cats with panleukopenia succumb to anemia.

Owners should discuss the vaccines available and which ones would be most appropriate for their pets with their primary care veterinarians. While I strongly recommend Rabies and the core vaccines for all pets, other vaccines like kennel cough and feline leukemia can be given based on the pet's risk for exposure. Developing a relationship with a primary care veterinarian is the best approach. If you need some financial assistance, please consider looking into low cost vaccine clinics where a veterinarian is administering the vaccines. Rabies must be administered by a veterinarian to be considered valid. Some pet stores and feed stores offer vaccine clinics staffed by a veterinarian. Many shelters offer low-cost vaccine clinics with veterinarians on site, especially if you adopted the pet from them. Many rescue groups will vaccinate and neuter the pets before offering them for adoption. Vaccine clinic announcements are often posted in local newspapers and on social media.

As appealing as it sounds to buy and administer your own vaccines, mishandling of vaccines could render them ineffective or toxic. If you are not experienced in handling vaccines, needles and syringes, please let professionals do it for your pet.