Anything For Animals

posted by admin on May 31

Rabies Shots For Cats And Dogs

Preventative vaccines are widely available in the UK and the US for our pets and livestock, at a small cost. The program of vaccination depends on the type of vaccine being given, as there are several types available for different animals, containing various active ingredients and length of protection.

There are 2 main types of vaccine:

Inactivated - Contains sufficient antigens (which stimulate an immune response) and no live virus of any type.
Live - Containing a live virus of a slightly different strain which does not cause the actual disease.

There have been reports of the live vaccine causing actual rabies in cats which already have a known immune suppression like FeLV (Feline Leukaemia Virus) or FIV (Feline Immunodeficiency Virus). Their bodies simply do not have the resources to produce a sufficient immune response to an actual virus. This can also be found in humans with weakened immune systems.

Vaccine Programs
Initial vaccination involves a single injection. Kittens and puppies of 3-4 months can be vaccinated and given regular boosters throughout their lives. Adult animals need to follow a slightly different vaccine pattern, but will be protected at the same level, if regular boosters are continued.

If bitten by a rabid animal, vaccinated animals can usually produce enough antibodies to fight off the virus before it enters the Central Nervous System (CNS), thereby ridding themselves of the attack before clinical symptoms appear. So, it is possible that you may never even know that your pet was infected.

However, once clinical signs (identifiable symptoms such as drooling or paralysis) appear in an un-vaccinated animal, the disease is already in the CNS and brain, and is nearly always fatal.

Can a dog have a reaction to a rabies shot?
As with any animal and any vaccine, there is the possibility that the additional ingredients used in the vaccine material could react with the chemistry of the animal involved; as can happen with egg and milk allergies in human vaccines.

As a result, there may well be dogs that have an allergic reaction to a rabies shot, but sometimes the result of the vaccine far outweighs the odd animal that could react to it’s ingredients.

Vaccines need to reach a certain %age threshold in a population to be really successful, so the more people that avoid the vaccine for just the minimal chance that their one pet could have a reaction, are as a result, seriously jeopordising the safety of humans around the globe.

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