Hi,
just curious, hi many times should we give our dogs vaccination? what are the most important?
My pup is 4 month old. he's had parvo vaccination twice, and distemper, parainfluenza, hepatitis, and lepto vaccination each once. he's about to have anoterh DLHPP vaccine plus rabies in a week.
Am I giving too much vaccination?
thanks

As long as you give vacs within 3weeks of each other
you are ok..If you pup is 4 months and only has 2, then
you may want to talk to the vet. My pup is now 5 months
and has had 4 vacs 3 weeks apart starting at 7 weeks
of age and he got his rabies at 4months, plus he has had
2 months of heartworm pills. So depeneding on when the
puppy was givien the first vac, you must keep going 3 weeks from the last one. You should be able to get
rabies after the 4th vacs. Call your vet to be sure, every
vet is different. It is important to give the vacs every 3 weeks until rabies, or you will have to start over.

A series of 3-4 puppies shots 3-4 weeks apart is common with revaccination at a year. Then I feel its the owners choice adn I do not continue to revaccinate after a year of age and if I am worried I draw titters to see fi my dogs need to be vaccinated again.

I would NOT let a vet administer Rabies in combination with another vaccine. If the dog has a reaction (not uncommon, I'm afraid)- then how would you know what vaccine he was reacting to? And multiple vaccines in a day is awfully taxing on a pup's body.

Lepto is a weird vaccine- I personally don't allow any of my dogs to recieve it. It has a high reaction rate (especially amongst small breeds- like my mini dachshunds) and is awfully ineffective ("protecting" mildly from 4 strains of MANY that dogs can be affected by- and only for 6-7 months). My house dogs are NOT at risk for catching Lepto, either- so it's simply not worth the reactions. Our vet doesn't administer it, anyway, though. :)

Distemper (ask for a combo without Lepto if you don't want it), Parvo, and Rabies are important to vaccinate against- but all three vaccines are EXTREMELY effective. Boostering annually is MAJOR overkill- as a properly vaccinated pup will be immune from the big three illnesses for around 7 years (but likely longer!).

A good place to read up on vaccination concerns:
http://www.critteradvocacy.org/

I know all vets have different recommendations but I find it curious you don't use Lepto. For USDA breeders that vaccine is REQUIRED yearly.

I do not use lepto as well, nor cornoa. I do a distemper, parvo, parainflenza combo, sometimes bord later, and rabies by law.

the leptospirosis vaccine can be deadly when given to certaiin breeds of dogs, espeically chihuahuas and schnauzers. As leptospirosis is NOT a deadly disease like parvovirus, distemper or rabies, I don't see much point to giving it when the risk from the vaccine is so high. Regarding USDA breeders being required to give it? How many annual breedings again are required to be a USDA licensed breeder? A lot, and more than most responsible breeders will ever do. The Animal Welfare Act requires wholesale breeders and brokers to be USDA licensed, as they are usually selling their puppies to the Pet store industry. This doesn't apply to the vast majority of reputable breeders anyway.

As I CLEARLY stated- my dogs are NOT at risk to pick up leptosprirosis. They don't frolic in standing water that woodland creatures or rats frequent (I'm in suburbia, for god's sake), I don't live anywhere near a farm (whose animals are generally vaccinated, anyway), and my dogs don't sit outside where they could encounter a strange animal. There's an extremely low incidence of Lepto in my area- so low that we aren't even on the radar. Mini-dachshunds are prone to going into severe anaphylactic shock after being given this vaccine. And finally- I'm not a breeder- LEAST of all one requiring USDA licensure- and couldn't give a flip less what their requirements state- as I'd never deal with one, anyway.

There are a few instances where the vaccine *might* be worth looking into. Some areas are high-risk for the strains the vaccine "protects" against (it doesn't prevent infection- but can lessen the severity of an infection).

MOST of the country, however- is overvaccinating. Vets make a profit from needless boostering, pharm companies make a profit from labeling their boosters for only a year- against the findings of medical studies, and you and your dog suffer.

When was YOUR last vaccination? We don't vaccinate our kids annually, we barely vaccinate adults at ALL.

***Edited By: longdogs4me on 4/6/2005 1:33:37 PM***
Reason: .

I'm not going to argue about the regulations and who and who do not have to be licensed by USDA. It's in the books for all to read if they want to know the truth. I was just wondering why the government would require it of the licensed breeder if it weren't necessary. They require it of the breeder with 12 dogs or the one with 100. I guess the important thing is as you stated, the area the dogs are to be in. I know that kennel dogs are not as healthy as the average "pet" who gets to roam free (coming from a rural area) and I do agree that I believe there's a lot of vaccination going on. I was just kind of curious on someone's thought about the Lepto.

***Edited By: bell33us on 4/6/2005 3:03:04 PM***
Reason: ##