Why do we vaccinate our pets so much?

Question

Why is it that our pets "need" to get vaccinated almost every year? Humans certainly don't need to do this except for the flu shot which is a different situation... It seems to me that immunological memory should exist in cats and dogs too.

Answer 1

Despite popular belief, it is actually not good for your pet to get vaccinated every year. Read the book "protect your pet" by Ann N. Martin. She also wrote a good book about the facts of pet food. Here is a link to a page describing both books that she has written.

http://www.y2khealthanddetox.com/annmartin.html

and here's a quote from that website:

"Some major veterinary colleges such as Colorado State University, along with a growing number of veterinarians in private practice, now question if the risks of yearly vaccinations might outweigh the risks of animals contracting some of these diseases. Titer testing, described below, gives a pet owner a good indication how often an animal companion should be vaccinated. Even the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) cautions against excessive vaccinations. In August 1999, the AAHA released its opinion paper regarding vaccinations. The AAHA President, Michael Paul, DVM, wrote, "The intent of the opinion paper is to encourage veterinarians to consider vaccination procedures as medical decisions and not automatic actions prompted by a calendar."(4)

Although some veterinary colleges and veterinarians are stating publicly that pets are immune to these diseases for one, two, three years, and even longer after the initial vaccinations, it is still common practice in the United States and Canada for veterinarians to recommend yearly vaccinations. The necessity of frequent vaccinations is now being called into question.

Jean Dodds, DVM, a veterinarian in private practice in Santa Monica, California and one of the foremost experts in pet vaccinations, believes that vaccinations with single or combination modified live virus are increasingly recognized contributors to immune-mediated blood diseases, bone marrow failure, and organ dysfunction. Dr. Dodds also lists leukemia, thyroid disease, Addison’s disease, diabetes and lymphoma as diseases that can be triggered by vaccines. "Combining viral antigens, especially those of modified live virus (MLV) type, which multiply in the host, elicits a stronger antigenic challenge to the animal," explains Dr. Dodds in an article on the immune system. "This is often viewed as desirable because a more potent immunogen presumably mounts a more effective and sustained immune response. However, it can also overwhelm the immuno compromised or even a healthy host that is continually bombarded with other environmental stimuli and has a genetic predisposition that promotes adverse response to viral challenge." (5)

In October 2000, the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association published a study that was undertaken by Dodds and Lisa Twark, DVM. The purpose of the study was to assess whether serum canine parvovirus (CPV) and canine distemper virus (CDV) antibody titers, (titer tests are discussed later in this chapter) could determine revaccination protocols in healthy dogs. For this study, 1,441 dogs were used ranging in age from six weeks to seventeen years.

The interval between the last vaccination and the antibody measurement using a titer test was from one to two years for the majority of dogs, 60 percent, and two to seven years for 30.3 percent, and one year for 9.6 percent of the dogs used in the study. The conclusion arrived at by Drs. Twark and Dodds: “The high prevalence of adequate antibody responses (CPV 95.1%; CDV 97.6%) in this large population of dogs suggests that annual revaccination against CPV and CDV may not be necessary. (6)<

All packages of vaccinations carry warnings that they should be injected only in healthy animals. In the case of cats, vaccine manufacturers advise against vaccinating pregnant or nursing cats. However, many pets are not healthy when vaccinated although they might not have outward signs of health problems. Charles Loops, DVM, a holistic veterinarian from Pittsboro, North Carolina, notes that "chemically killed viruses or bacteria are injected directly into the blood stream, which is an unnatural route of infection." (7) This causes the animal’s antibodies to attempt to fight off the offending virus molecules and render them harmless. If the animal’s immune system is too weakened, he or she cannot fight off these viruses and can develop a reaction to the vaccine. Even small amounts of a virus that is introduced through a vaccination may be too much for sick animals to fight off. They then may fall ill from the very disease to which they have been vaccinated.

If you have concerns about vaccinating your pet, Michael Lemmon, DVM, suggests the following: "First, don't vaccinate your dog or cat when he is showing any signs of illness. If your pet is already ill, his immune system may not be able to produce antibodies the vaccination is supposed to stimulate; and he stands a chance of being overwhelmed by the small amount of virus in the vaccine, and succumbing to the illness he’s being vaccinated against." (8)

Some veterinarians believe that vaccines are outright damaging to our pets. Dr. Loops writes in an article, "Veterinarians and animal guardians have to come to realize that they are not protecting animals from disease by annual vaccinations, but in fact, are destroying the health and immune system of these same animals they love and care for." (9) In the same article, Christina Chambreau, DVM, Founder and Chairperson of the Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy, expresses similar views: "Routine vaccinations are probably the worst thing that we do for our animals. They cause all types of illnesses but not directly to where we would relate them definitely to be caused by the vaccine."(10) "

I hope this educates you about your pet's health and educates others who have read this. Spread the word and protect your pets please!

Answer 2

I think it's so the vets can have a steady income...easy money. Immune system memory is better than needing yearly vaccinations. I actually asked my immunology professor about this and he agreed that it is overkill and can actually be harmful for the animals in the long run. Unfortunately, all boarding kennels and training facilities require yearly vaccinations, so I don't have much of a choice in the matter.

Answer 3

Some people now have titers drawn on their pets yearly (to check for distemper, leptosporosis, etc. immunity) to see if they still have immunity instead. This is more costly, though, and a kennel will not take a dog in that does not have current vaccines. So, you take a risk if you have a sudden emergency & need to board your pet.

The Rabies vaccine is, however, required by law. Some states require it yearly, some every 3 years. As we have recently had a case of human rabies here in Indiana, I do not think this one being legally required is a bad thing. Too scary!

Answer 4

some tests have been done on this and you are correct - for the most part we do over vaccinate
indoor cats should be vaccinated and boosted then left for 3 years before given other vaccination
dogs should be vaccinated again (after the initial booster) every 2 years...

I should add that this is for North America... I dont know about European, Asian, etc countries if they have certain different diseases or what....

Answer 5

I think most people vaccinate every year because that's what all the VETS are telling people to do! I've never ONCE had a vet ask me about doing titers instead. I never even KNEW about titers until I did my own research (and we all know how few people do any research on their pets around here). Aside from that... titers are generally more expensive than vaccines, so people opt for the cheap/quick method instead.

Answer 6

Studies have shown that we actually may be over vaccinating our pets. The first few years are especially important, and same with the elderly years. Not a bad thing to research for your own personal knowledge or to ask your vet.

Answer 7

It is unhealthy and the rabies shot is the worst it can cause seizures in your pet. I used to vaccinate my pets but now i do not plus i keep my cats indoors and walk my dogs on a leach. You are right about asking "Why" i used to think like this till i borrowed a book from the library about holistic veterinarians it has a wealth of information about all of this stuff we were led to believe. Our pets are living not stuffed

Answer 8

Rabies vaccines are required by law. I think that is an obvious one. Some areas have three year vaccines. You should check into that.

Answer 9

vaccination of pets is very important... so theres a need to vaccinate our pets specially dogs to immunize them to protect the people bitten by them from rabbies. an anti-rabbies vaccination is needed for every pets because it is very dangerous if people are bitten by them.

Answer 10

I think it's mostly because of lawyers and lawsuits. You have to get your dog a rabies vaccine every so often because they want to make sure there are no rabid dogs around that might bite someone, resulting in lawsuits, and you have to get your dog kennel cough vaccinated before most kennels will take them, because they don't want to chance getting sued by people whose dogs got kennel cough from their kennel.

Answer 11

I think the US and state government just love to find anyway to take as much money from anyone as possible i didn't see why you have to get so much for a pet....they tend to be better off then humans.but i love my horses and pay tons of money each year so
that there in good condition.So i cant make sense of it but its worth it..

Gina