Vaccinations

or if your adult dog really needs any more core vaccines.

Fortunately, tetanus is relatively rare in dogs. Horses and humans are more susceptible to tetanus, while cats are highly resistant. Dogs fall somewhere in the middle of this spectrum – but it does happen. As an emergency veterinarian, I have personally seen two cases of tetanus in dogs and read of several others.

Vaccines are something that every dog owner should be educated about, and yet few seem to think about them at all, except to wonder about the need for them after they get a new dog. However, many people base this concern on the vet bill, rather than worries about the potential for side effects in their dogs! Immunology expert Ronald Schultz, PhD, Diplomate ACVIM (American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine), has spent much of his career studying animal vaccines. Dr. Schultz is professor and chair of the Department of Pathobiological Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine, and has more than 40 years' experience in the field of immunology. His long-time university employment - as opposed to a career in industry - has provided him with a unique position of neutrality from which to observe the vaccine industry.

Every year rattlesnakes bite more than 100,000 dogs in the United States, with an estimated 40% of bites resulting in severe reactions and fatal...

In the past decade, the veterinary profession’s overall attitude toward vaccination has evolved to a point that can be tentatively termed progressive. In 2002, the American Veterinary Medical Association issued a policy statement that urged veterinarians to “customize” vaccine protocols for individual patients, since there is “inadequate data to scientifically determine a single best protocol” for initial or repeat vaccinations. A year later, the prestigious American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) released its landmark canine vaccination guidelines, which were updated in 2006.

Arkansas canines and their humans have very good reason to celebrate the start of the new decade. That state’s new rule allowing for a three-year rabies vaccine became effective January 1, 2010. This means dogs in Arkansas will need to be vaccinated only every three years (after their initial first-year booster) instead of annually, as was previously required.

Most dog owners are responsible and understand the importance of protecting their companions from preventable disease. That’s surely what motivated the dozens of people I observed standing in a long line with their dogs and puppies at a low-cost vaccination clinic offered in a local pet supply store.

How is parvo spread among dogs? Whole Dog Journal discusses a number of canine parvovirus prevention and treatment approaches taken by veterinarians and dog guardians today. Reactions to parvovirus vary widely. In a world where parvovirus is literally everywhere, parvo kills some dogs and leaves others unscathed. And in the debate about parvo vaccination, some people vaccinate their dogs early and often, while others refuse to vaccinate against parvo at all.

Holistic veterinarians have long decried the annual vaccination schedule recommended by many conventionally trained veterinarians for all dogs. Many holistic veterinarians suspect that many of the complex ailments that plague our modern dogs – from allergies to digestive problems to aggressive behavior and so on – have their roots in immune system problems brought on by excessive and unnecessary vaccination. However, many of us are convinced by our veterinarians that our dogs won’t be safe unless they receive these boosters every year. Fortunately, a recent study indicates that most dogs retain humoral antibody protection from past vaccinations for longer than previously thought.

Distemper in dogs is caused by paramyxovirus which attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous system. It is spread by sneezing, and shared food and water bowls.

Here’s an indisputable fact: Vaccines have saved millions of lives. The vaccine discoveries of medical pioneers such as Edward Jenner and Louis Pasteur introduced a new era of health care for humans. Smallpox, once the most feared disease in the world, is thought to be eradicated. Ask any senior citizen to name the great medical advances of this century, and he or she will invariably list the polio vaccine.

Let’s be clear: In most cases, vaccines are miraculous, life-saving agents. The diseases they (usually) prevent in our dogs range from always fatal (such as rabies) to serious and sometimes fatal (such as distemper, parvovirus, leptospirosis) to the rarely fatal (such as bordetella and coronavirus). And even diseases that are not fatal can cause all sorts of grief for both the dog in question and his owner (and the owner’s pocketbook). Dog lovers the world over are eternally grateful for the gifts that modern vaccines have conferred upon our canine companions.