Canine Vaccines and Bloodwork

Vaccinations:

Rabies is a viral disease affecting the central nervous system. Dogs, cats, ferrets, foxes, bats, and raccoon are the most commonly affected animals in this area. This disease is zoonotic, which means it is transmissible to people. It is required by law that all pets be kept current on their rabies vaccine. For both dogs and cats, the first vaccine given at 4 months is effective for one year. Subsequent vaccines are valid for 3 years.

DHLPPC is a vaccine that protects against several different diseases:

Canine Distemper is a highly contagious disease primarily affecting the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous systems. Clinical signs include thick nasal discharge, vomiting and diarrhea, and partial or generalized seizures. This disease is fairly uncommon, mostly due to the effectiveness and widespread use of the vaccine. It is usually seen in puppies.

Canine infectious Hepatitis is caused by an adenovirus, and causes acute liver failure. Clinical signs include vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, and abdominal pain. This disease is also uncommon due to the effectiveness and widespread use of the vaccine.

Leptospirosis is a bacterial disease that infects the kidney and liver. It is usually passed through the urine of infected wildlife or other dogs. Because of this transmission, high risk areas include moist or marshy wooded areas, especially if standing water is present. The vaccine is not 100% effective, but is thought to be protective in many cases. There are also frequent allergic reactions to this vaccine, especially in small breed dogs. Because of risk-benefit ratios, we tend to skip this vaccine in small breed dogs, or in any dog who has reacted to this vaccine. In these cases we use a “puppy shot” which is simply a DHLPPC vaccine without the Lepto component. Clinical signs are extremely variable.

Parvovirus is another highly contagious disease primarily affecting puppies. The clinical signs of parvovirus are vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy. While still uncommon, it is much more prevalent than distemper, mostly due to its ability to persist in the environment for up to 6 months. The transmission is fecal-oral, which is why we always recommend keeping your puppy out of dog parks and other uncontrolled environments until the last vaccine is given at 4 months. Due to a complex interaction between the maternal antibodies obtained in utero and the vaccines given by your vet, your puppy cannot be considered completely protected from parvo or distemper until this last vaccine, even if the vaccines are given in accordance with our protocol. As with Distemper, once this vaccine is given, the protection is excellent.

Parainfluenza is a common cause of coughing and sneezing in dogs. The virus is usually confined to the respiratory tract and rarely causes serious disease. It is highly contagious, and is considered to be part of the “Kennel Cough” syndrome, along with Bordetella. The vaccine is not 100% effective, but has been shown to decrease the duration of clinical signs and/or the chance of becoming clinical at all.

Like Parvovirus, Coronavirus is a disease of the intestines. However, Coronavirus seems to only affect weak or debilitated dogs, especially those already infected with parvovirus. Thus it is rarely seen as a sole infectious agent.

Bordetella is a highly contagious bacterial disease of the upper respiratory tract, and is the primary organism responsible for the syndrome known as Kennel Cough. Because it is bacterial, it is treated with antibiotics, but affected dogs may continue to show symptoms for 1 to 2 weeks. The disease is usually confined to the upper respiratory tract (trachea and bronchi) but will rarely cause pneumonia (infection of the lung tissue). The vaccine is not 100% effective, but as with parainfluenza, can prevent or shorten the clinical course. This vaccine is intranasal (nose drops), and is usually administered by one of our technicians. We recommend this vaccine for any dogs who board, go to groomers, trainers, or dog parks, or who have frequent social interaction with other dogs.

Other (Non-core vaccines): These are not typically recommended by us unless we feel that a specific pet is at higher risk.

Lyme disease is a tick-borne disease causing arthritis, lethargy, blood cell changes, and possible kidney disease. The vaccine is of questionable efficacy, and some infectious disease specialists feel the vaccine may cause clinical signs of the disease itself. Because of the controversy regarding this vaccine, we like to focus on tick prevention as the primary method of prevention. However, dogs at high risk (hunting dogs or dogs that seem to persistently attract ticks despite our best preventatives) may be good candidates for this vaccine.

Giardia is a single celled intestinal parasite that can affect almost any mammal, including humans. Clinical signs include vomiting and diarrhea. Transmission is fecal-oral, and this organism is usually found in lakes and ponds. Recent studies have not been able to prove that the vaccine is protective against infection, so this is not part of our core vaccine protocol.

Bloodwork