Our friend over at 2BrownDawgs posed a really great question to me; why don’t I vaccinate against Distemper.
I’m going to try not to climb on one of my favorite soap boxes here, but give you a quick and dirty. 😉
The older I’ve gotten and the more information I digest, I’ve begun to feel that we over-vaccinate in this country. Honestly, if I was having children right now I would be thinking long and hard about what I would vaccinate for. But I digress….
The first set of shots we gave to Sampson left him with a hard lump on his lower back. That was when I seriously started questioning shots.
In CT your dog must be vaccinated for Rabies; that is the only shot they require. Most training centers require your dog to be vaccinated against Bordetella (Kennel Cough) and Distemper.
Sampson has been vaccinated against Bordetella and gotten the virus; three times. That was when I asked the vet what the point was of vaccinating him if he was going to get it anyway. The best explanation I got was the shot covers two or three of the 12 known strains. Well if it covered all but two or three then I might consider it; but since I don’t board the dogs and they don’t go to dog shows, I pass on the Bordetella.
In the past I have had the dogs Titered (Tie derd) which is a measuring of antibodies in the blood. That is usually sufficient for daycare.
Each year when I take the dogs for their annual visits, I discuss the shots with the vet to determine which shots they really need. At Delilah’s last visit we talked about Distemper and Parvo and if I remember the conversation correctly, our Dr. feels the shots protection lasts much longer than the manufacturer indicates. Hubby thinks she said ten years, but the American Animal Hospital recommendation is seven years. You can read their recommendations for all vaccinations here.
My vet tends to favor the holistic side of medicine, which is why I like her and every visit I say, “Dr. Soutter, what do you vaccinate your dog for?”
Last visit she vaccinated for Rabies and Leptospirosis; and since we spend a lot of time hiking in areas where wild animals live, we decided to vaccinate for Leptos.
Sampson is scheduled for his yearly check up next Friday and I intend on re-visiting the vaccination subject. I’ll keep you posted. 😉
Thanks again to 2BrownDawgs for the most excellent question.
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