Feline rabies vaccine question.?

Question

I have tried finding the answer to this question online but haven't had any luck.

I have recently adopted two brother cats that are a year and a half old. They are completely up to date on their shots and vet visits. We have their vet records and they received their rabies vaccine on December 23rd, 2006.

Is it OK for them to get their new vaccine (rabies) at the beginning of November? It would be about 2 months early (give or take a few days) and I just want to know if this is safe. There is not enough room/time to explain why so could you please just answer the question. Either way they will get their vaccines whenever it is safe.

FYI, they have no health problems and have not come in contact with any other animals so there is no way they are infected with rabies. Just in case that matters to the answer.

If you could prove your answer somehow that would be perfect.

Thanks in advance.
-Brit

Thank you to all who answered the question asked!

To the people who told me not to vaccinate my cats, I do not agree with you at all. They will be vaccinated for two reasons. One - I want to protect my babies from any harm that I can and that includes rabies. Two - there is a law in my state that all cats must be vaccinated against rabies. They would be vaccinated even if there wasn't a law.

The reason I haven't asked a vet is because we haven't chosen one for them yet since they just came into our home.

Thanks for all your help.

Answer 1

Last year one of mine got her shots about 2 months early. The vet didn't have a problem with that.

Answer 2

Rabies is a vaccination that is required by law in most areas. That being said I'm glad you are going to vaccinate. The chances of a cat actually getting rabies is less than them getting one of the other contagious cat diseases. Let's say you have people over. The cat bites or scratches someone. That person has to seek medical attention. You are going to be very happy you have that proof of the rabies vaccine. Is it safe to vaccinate early? Just about every vet will tell you yes. I've fostered a ton of stray cats. Not knowing anything about their vaccination history I start from scratch. There is always the possibility that the cat was just vaccinated before I found it. Never had any negative reactions from the cats. I would discuss with your vet a realistic schedule of vaccination for your cats. I don't feel they need to be given all the vaccines on an annual basis, it's simply too much to put in their systems. Yes, there is the possibility that over vaccinating your pet could lead to cancer. Having them examined on a yearly basis is important and hopefully your vet doesn't feel that cats should be vaccinated yearly.

Answer 3

Actually I'd just call up several vets and ask the question. Doesn't matter if it's your own vet, you need to see a professional's opinion on if it's too early to give the vaccination.

Also, would you be getting the one year shot or the three year shot? They do make rabies vaccines in 3 year now.

Answer 4

Yes it is fine.

Do not listen to Ken. Rabies MUST be given according to the law or you can find yourself in a heap of trouble!!!! Cats, even when kept indoors, need to be up to date on the rabies vaccine..The other vaccines are your choice. Rabies is fatal to animals and humans once symptoms have appeared. It is nothing to mess around with.

Getting the vaccine about 6 weeks early is not a problem. Not many people show up for the vaccine on the exact date it is due. And it is better to be early than late!!!

Here is a story about someone that refused to vaccinate the indoor cats...because they had NO contact with wildlife!!!!

They had three cats...no rabies vaccines. One night, they woke up with 2 bats in the house. They called a bunch of agencies and someone did come and remove the bats, but because there was a potential of human exposure, they were sent for testing. One was positive for rabies. The people had to undergo rabies vaccination and the cats, since they were NOT vaccinated either had to be quarantined for 6 months at the owners expense, or euthanized. They could not afford the quarantine, so the cats had to be euthanized.

All preventable if the owners got a simple vaccine for them!

And if your vaccinated cat has exposure to a rabid animal, they get a booster. Does not matter if the last vaccine was 6 months ago, they get another one. So 2 months early will not cause a problem. And if

Ken, Ken, Ken...what can be said. You have bought into some propaganda. "Vaccines kill". People need to move beyond that. Rabies is a DEADLY disease. If you are willing to put the health of your cat and your family ahead of getting a simple vaccine, fine. The law is there to protect people and animals from it. I do not agree with over-vaccination. I avoid all vaccines that my dogs and cats do not need. I get titers for them yearly.....for ALL of them. It costs a small fortune. It is a TON more expensive than just getting a vaccine. However, I work at a cat shelter and there is significant illness at times. I foster cats and kittens that have Calici, and panleukopenia. It is not woth my cats health not to have them immune to these diseases.
The law is not saying kill you pets...that is an unitelligent statement.

Answer 5

They can receive their rabies vaccinations early if necessary.

I would recommend that you be sure they are getting Merial PureVax, though. It's twice as expensive as the other rabies vaccines because it has a different adjuvant (a component of vaccines) than the other manufacturers use.

In a small percentage of cats given rabies vaccine other than the Merial type, cancer develops at the vaccination site.

Answer 6

Many holistic and homeopathic veterinarians are very concerned about the over-use of vaccines for companion animals. There has been NO research to show how long any of the vaccines are good for. You can have titers done on your cats to see if they have the rabies antibodies in their systems. And that is much more expensive than just giving a vaccine. Neither vets nor vaccine manufacturers have any interest in doing the necessary research.

My cats have not had any vaccinations in the past seven years. I stopped them because of the concerns over the high rate of vaccine associated cancers at the injection sites.

Go to http://www.littlebigcat.com and read Dr. Jean Hovfe's article titled "Vaccinations". There are also a number of articles in Dr. Hovfe's newsletter archives. Dr. Hovfe is one of the veterinarians active in promoting the Rabies Challenge Fund to get the $$ necessary to do the research on how long that vaccine is good for.

You have the right to deny rabies vaccination or any other for your cats. So arm yourself with a little more information than you will pick up here about them.

So the simple answer to your question "will it hurt them to do it two months before the year is up?" You may hurt them by doing it at all. Certainly if your cats are indoors I feel it is entirely unnecessary.

Answer 7

You need to research about this. IMO there is no reason to get another rabies shot EVER nor to boost other shots. There is NO proof tghat this extends the life of the original shot and some may argue it weakens it and the immune system
My cats are indoo/outdoor, get 1 set of shots and that is IT.
Many problems associated with vaccines are just not known as people don't research this and many problems go unreported
http://www.holisticat.com/vaccinations.html
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Farm/1050/vaccinations.html
Added for gotnewsfs
I am very happy you put the LAW ahead of your cat's health. I do not nor would I follow any law, doctor , president or anything else blindly without knowing what the repercussions are/ If it was LAW that you kill 1 out of every 5 kittens born or you would get in trouble, you may do it, I WON"T

Answer 8

I wouldn't prematurely give the rabies shots.
I've heard cases where too frequent and regular vaccinations can cause cancer at the injection sites.
Besides I don't give any of my indoor animals rabies,.. they have no contact with wildlife. Never have.
Not worth the risk, besides no need to and also I try to avoid putting unnecessary serum into their system.

Answer 9

Merials vaccine is modified. I am not sure if it is sold in Japan yet but most likely it is.

Answer 10

Ask your vet if you can, they would give the best answer.

I can't see why they can't do it a little early, it shouldn't harm them.

Good luck