To vaccinate adult dog or not??

sudzs

My dog is now 11 and had all his vaccinations in his first year of his life. I have not had him vaccinated since as I believe he is still covered by the vaccines he received then.

However he did get a parvo shot a few months ago which I was browbeaten by the vet into getting it done. The dog was extremely unwell for the rest of that day with tremors and hardly moved from the onw spot and the following day he had an epilectic seizure which he had not had for at least 18 months due to my pinpointing and avoiding the dietary triggers.

So I'm curious about peoples thoughts on the whole vaccination thing...

Do you think it is necessary to have boosters every year? Ever heard of a dog getting parvo or distemper because he didn't have the boosters? Does the fact that about half a vets income comes from animals in for their booster shots make you wonder? Not to mention the drug companies...

hadook

My dogs are on a 3 yearly booster regime (bar Lepto) and they won't be vaccinated again once they hit 9/10 onwards (again, bar Lepto - we're in a high risk area for that) as I feel the side effects of yearly boosters are too serious to vaccinate and that the risks outweigh the benefits. I don't kennel my dogs though.

This is my own personal opinion, based on years of study and long discussions with my vet.

hadook

sudzs wrote: »

Ever heard of a dog getting parvo or distemper because he didn't have the boosters?

I just want to point out that the current parvo vaccination (and booster) cover different strains than the one available 10 years ago would have. I've seen dogs with parvo (fully vaccinated dogs AND unvaccinated dogs too) and it's a horrible disease. If you do go down the route of not vaccinating every year you really do need to keep in touch with your vet re changes in vaccinations or outbreaks of a disease in your area.

It's not just a case of "ah, sure they'll be grand, they're covered for life" and off you go unfortunately.

muckety

I wonder why they cannot develop a vaccine that is lifelong, such as most of the human vaccines? Probably as OP says, due to Vets making most of their income from them.

You can give the vaccine yourself for a few euro.

carwash_2006

A vaccine that would last a lifetime is not possible as some of the diseases change, so the dog is still protected in some cases by the original vaccine but because the disease mutates the antibodies do not recognise it.

If they could make vaccinations for bacterial infections that last longer they certainly would, as things like leptospirosis are transmitable to humans. As it is there is some doubt that the lepto vaccination even lasts the full year. A very small amount of researching on google will give you some idea of the difficulties involved.

I would not go around telling people that they can vaccinate themselves for a few euro. Currently it is illegal to sell prescription medicines to anyone except a vet - vaccinations are prescription. There will be legislation coming in eventually making it illegal for anyone but a vet to vaccinate animals.

spottykatt

I believe he is still covered by the vaccines he received then.

OP, your dog will not be covered by the vaccines he recieved 10years ago as the immunity will have declined.

Ever heard of a dog getting parvo or distemper because he didn't have the boosters?

Unfortunately unvaccinated dogs get parvovius quite commonly and if unlucky enough to ever see a dog suffer with the infecton, it would certainly encourage anyone to keep up the boosters to protect their own dog from it.

Does the fact that about half a vets income comes from animals in for their booster shots make you wonder?

Bit of an exageration:D, but in reality the time given for an annual booster actually allows your dog to get its annual health check up by your vet which is recommended anyway!

You can give the vaccine yourself for a few euro

Em...no you cant! As carwash said, vaccines are pom medications under legislation and so can only be given by a vet. These laws are strictly enforced and vets can potentially get into serious trouble if the dont administer the vaccine themselves.

My own 2pence worth..., vaccination is actually a relatively small price to pay to safeguard our pets health against these serious diseases

Lauragoesmad

What are the symptoms of parvo?

Morganna

Terrible diarohea with a very awful smell ,blood in it and the dog stares at water but doesnt drink also vomiting and the dog is so listless.High temperature