Random Vaccine Stuff

[BlessedGirl]

I'm wondering what your insight is on this. I've never been a "vaccine queen", therefore naturally I don't lean heavily that way when it comes to my dogs' health.

The rabies vaccine is one my lil dogs get. That's the only vaccine we gave in the past...

Until one of the farm dogs got parvo. If I remember right the vet said treatment was $2-$9K and 9% chance recovery. That was a mess, and although we treated naturally and he quickly recovered, it's something I don't want to have to deal with. I give the parvo shot to my dogs because of that risk. I brought one of the farm dogs to my vet earlier this year for her first shots (at nearly three years old). She's not my dog. But she had never been sick except for salmon poisoning.

I give leptospirosis because my vet recommended it since it's in my area. Someone who lives in my town and goes to my vet's church got lepto from their family's dog. My dogs are frequently exposed to mice, other rodents, birds, etc., on the farm and we live on the West (aka "Wet" ) Coast so the risk is higher.

Other than that I probably wouldn't give the rest except the others are included in the parvo combo vaccine. My pups get a rabies shot, a DA2P and then a DA2PP the first year. I don't personally know anyone who's dealt with adenovirus/hepatitis, distemper or parainfluenza. Have any of you guys have dealt with those diseases, and what was the outcome? Are they more common in adult dogs or in puppies?

I don't board my dogs or bring them to the groomer or dog parks, so no kennel cough shots.

My vet doesn't keep monovalent/single virus vaccines on hand (at least not parvo). Have any of you used monovalent (aka "single virus") vaccines or know any one who does? I noticed LCS carries parvovirus vaccine. Kinda kicking the idea around in my brain for the next time I have a new pup.

There's lots of info out there on vaccines. I was reading through an old thread on this forum tonight... And then there's titers. Have any of you guys done them on your dogs? I may possibly in the future, but they're so expensive. I think it was something like $200-$300 for the parvo-and-something-else-combo titer and $400 for rabies titer when I asked a few months back. Somewhere in that ballpark, anyway.

Thanks for any input.

[slistoe]

Perhaps the cost of vaccination is ridiculously high where you are. Here it is $35 - why fool around with "risk assessment"? Just get them vaccinated and end the worry.

[deseeker]

I get my dogs rabies shots every 3 years. I give my dogs kennel cough vaccine down the nose once a year. I give my dogs 10 way shots once a year. I give my dogs interceptor for heartworm and worm prevention once a month YEAR Round. It is cheap prevention compared to treating the dog if it catches something. If I do this every year, I don't need to worry about titer levels. I use tick prevention as well. Since I use interceptor year round my vet doesn't require me to do heartworm tests--he just sells me the pills. In my state you can do all the vacinations yourself EXCEPT rabies. I get my vaccines from my vet or thru Omaha Vaccine to insure it's fresh and stored at the proper temperature. All this is just my opinion on doing things.

[RayGubernat]

BG -

I don't get too nuts with the vaccine stuff. Of course, I make certain my dogs are vaccinated for Rabies, because that is the law.

I vaccinate puppies as recommended until they are about 3 years old. Parvo and distemper are absolute puppy killers and one of them (Parvo??) can kill a dog's sense of smell. After that age, I am much less inclined to vaccinate, especially if the dog is older and does not get out of the back yard all that much. I have always used the combination vaccines and include lepto.

I am quite certain that adult dogs have residual resistance to infections due to the repeat vaccinations they have received prior. I am also quite certain that annual re-vaccination is not ALWAYS necessary, but, as you stated, without doing expensive titers you cannot know the level of immunity the dog has at that point in time.

Honestly, after age 3-4, I will probably not vaccinate a dog until they are 6 or 7 and that might be the last one they get, since most of my pointers don't live past 10 or so. Some don't make it that long, but that is pointers. My dogs are in a kennel, in a fenced in yard, 90% of the time, so exposure risk is limited.

I do a monthly dosing for intestinal parasites(Ivermectin) and external parasites(Fipronil). 12 months a year.

The funny thing is that I have my horses vaccinated every year, for a multiple of infectious agents. According to my vets(several over the years), the protection wanes more quickly for horses, and to be honest, the costs and care requirements associated with a horse geting sick are typically huge, versus a dog getting sick, soooo, with horses, prevention is much preferred. It is one thing to keep a dog in a kennel or in a confined area in the house and doctor it two to four times a day and keep an eye on it... and quite another to keep horse in a stall in the barn and do the same.

Also, my horses are out in a pasture 24/7, and they eat the grass in the pasture, with whatever happens to have been left on it by passing critters, so their exposure risk is much higher than the dogs. They also get Ivermectin every month, 11 months a year with the 12th month a dose of a different anti-helminitic chemical, just in case some of the little critters became resistant.

Just what I have done and why. YMMV.



RayG

[shags]

Here is my vet's test for whether to vaccinate or not....

You gonna cry if the dog gets sick and dies?

My guys are exposed to lots of wildlife like raccoons, skunks, foxes and coyotes and once in a while I can see that some are sick. They aren't good at social distancing or masking, so the boys get the jab(s).

[Garrison]

BG,

You just received good advice from many many years of experience. I would be willing to bet your hometown vet would fully agree. What else is there to consider?

Garrison

[BlessedGirl]

Slistoe, they're not; they're $27 each. If I ever got titers done it wouldn't be because I feel it's necessary, though. I'm not worrying, I just wanted to get your valuable advice.

Here is my vet's test for whether to vaccinate or not....

You gonna cry if the dog gets sick and dies?

They are already almost done with their shots for the year, so the question isn't "should I vaccinate?" They already are. My questions are highlighted in the OP.

Thanks to those of you that shared your current protocol. RayG, I heard horses = sickness/vet bills all the time! Hope you still find your Ivermectin on the shelf.

BG,

You just received good advice from many many years of experience. I would be willing to bet your hometown vet would fully agree. What else is there to consider?

Garrison

I'm afraid I don't completely understand you. That's primarily my reason for posting on here because the years of expertise are valuable.

[Garrison]

Sorry, I misunderstood the question.

https://healthtopics.vetmed.ucdavis.edu ... s-and-cats

[oregon woodsmoke]

In the 1950s, I was 5 years old and distemper went through our neighborhood and killed every dog but ours.

Our dog was the only dog vaccinated against distemper and I can still remember before the epidemic, the next door neighbor ridiculing my dad for wasting good money to get our dog vaccinated and I can still remember the neighbor on the other side, sobbing broken-heartedly because her little toy poodle puppy died.

My dogs are fully vaccinated. Vaccinations are kept up to date.

if you don't want to spend a lot of money, you can buy the vaccine and do it yourself. or check with your humane society and they might have vaccination clinics that are lower cost than using the vet.

[BlessedGirl]

Thanks for the link, Garrison!

In the 1950s, I was 5 years old and distemper went through our neighborhood and killed every dog but ours.

Our dog was the only dog vaccinated against distemper and I can still remember before the epidemic, the next door neighbor ridiculing my dad for wasting good money to get our dog vaccinated and I can still remember the neighbor on the other side, sobbing broken-heartedly because her little toy poodle puppy died.

My dogs are fully vaccinated. Vaccinations are kept up to date.

if you don't want to spend a lot of money, you can buy the vaccine and do it yourself. or check with your humane society and they might have vaccination clinics that are lower cost than using the vet.

Wow. That's what I was looking for. Thanks!

No, the vaccine cost is relatively inexpensive so I'm not worried about that, although my vet did suggest I can do it myself and told me where to get the shots. With only two dogs, the vaccine cost is low. I like my vet and his clinic so no changing vets for me, but I definitely believe in over-vaccination and so does Dr. K so I just don't want to over-vaccinate. The dogs already have the DAP vax and that includes distemper, so we should be good for now.

[Garrison]

You’re welcome, glad it helped.