Pet Care

Vaccinations are perhaps the easiest and most effective preventive medicine you can provide for your pets. Vaccines stimulate the immune system, creating an excellent defense against debilitating and potentially fatal infectious diseases. Most vaccinations cost less than $30, far outweighing the cost of treating an animal for a disease that could have easily been prevented through vaccinations.

Most vaccines are geared for upper respiratory illnesses (such as the Distemper or Bordatella viruses) or intestinal infections (Parvovirus). But other vaccines help prevent against diseases with other serious consequences. Vaccinating outdoor cats against Feline Leukemia, for example, quite effectively prevents this disease which causes severe bone marrow suppression and terminal cancers.

Except for rabies, puppies and kittens should receive their first vaccines between six and eight weeks of age and be boostered two to three more times every three to four weeks, as determined by your veterinarian. Adult dogs with unknown vaccination history should also be given two vaccines three to four weeks apart.

After the first booster series, dogs and cats should be re-immunized a year later. Fortunately, with a solid vaccine basis, your pet’s immune system develops a strong “titer” (the level of immunity against an infectious disease). After the first annual booster, many of the vaccines thereafter only need to be repeated every three years. Use your veterinarian’s recommendations for your pet. Rabies vaccinations, required by law, are given once initially, boostered in one year, then every three years. There are some municipalities that still require annual vaccinations life-long.

Certainly vaccines are not without their own risks. However, the risks are usually significantly less likely than that of the offending infectious disease. Though uncommon, immediate allergic reactions would include vomiting, swollen face, and even shock. If your pet should develop a reaction to a vaccine, call your veterinarian or an emergency veterinary clinic immediately. Since vaccines rely on immune stimulation, it is even possible for vaccines to trigger severe immune complications (such as autoimmune hemolytic anemia) or even tumors (fibrosarcomas). Additionally, not all vaccines are necessary for all dogs or cats. Your veterinarian should provide you with an individualized vaccine protocol for your pet based on the region you live in and/or your pet’s lifestyle.

It is important to keep unvaccinated dogs and cats away from other unvaccinated animals or public areas. Until they have had their full booster series, consider your pets unvaccinated and susceptible to any disease.

While vaccines are important, routine checkups should also not be neglected, whether your pet is due for vaccines or not. Be sure to have your pets in for a wellness check with your veterinarian at least once a year – older dogs and cats, even twice a year.

The Colorado Veterinary Medical Foundation is dedicated to educating the public on proper pet care. Our veterinarians work hard to provide timely and useful information for pet owners. This article on the topic of vaccinations is from Harrison Memorial Animal Hospital’s medical director, Dr. Ingrid Pyka.