Vaccinations

j_f_a

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So I got Mitzy and his previous owners assured me his vaccs were all up to date. But they'd lost the card that told them when he was next due. Well I went to my vets with my rabbit and while there enquired about vaccinations. Or more to the point of could they tell when his last vaccination was without those papers. They told me to get his vets address and they'd ask them.

So I asked Paula what vet he was registered at. Her reply was he'd not been re-registered at a vet since they moved...four years ago. So he'd not had his jabs for at least four years! Now am I right in being shocked? My rabbits need their vaccs every 6 and 12 months, surely cat's need doing annually too?

So now I'm even more antsy about letting him out as I don't know if he's properly covered against...whatever it is vaccines cover cats against. What are the vaccines for?

Is he safe to leave for a little bit or do I need to get him in pronto? There are a lot of cats in our area but my rabbit is in a bad way so the vets bills on him are bleeding me dry and I hadn't counted on Mitzy needing his vaccs for a while yet as Paula had told me.
 

rosiemac

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Cats need their injections every year, so because Mitzy's never had any for the last four years he has to have them from scratch again as if he was a kitten, and this needs to be done before he's let outside.

Being in the UK he needs to have them for Leukemia, flu and enteritis.
 

optionken

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Aslong as he had his first set,I donot believe cats should get boosters at all. My cats are indoor/outdoor,got their first set of vaccinations and that is it.
There is no proof that boosters extend the life of the vaccine and may actually shorten the duration. They can also kill or cause major helth problems. I recommend the first set of vaccines for kittens and that is it.


I find these stats unreal
http://www.vaclib.org/legal/PetsDying.htm
and another
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/F...cinations.html
 

tallulah

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He would need two injections as they will have lapsed and then one yearly, for the reasons Rosiemac has stated.
 

juliejerks

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If I were you, I would call a few vets offices to get a few professional opinions. People seem to have a lot of different views on this subject.
 

rosiemac

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She's in the UK, and here, if a cat goes past it's date for it's yearly shots by approx 3 weeks it isn't covered anymore, which means they have to start from scratch again.
Originally Posted by optionken

They can also kill or cause major helth problems.
This is something i've talked to my vet about, and as yet there is no proof on this either.
 

GoldyCat

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My vet gives two of the vaccines yearly, but the rabies is given the first time at one year and then every three years. He wouldn't give the pregnant cat any shots at all. He want to wait until after she's weaned the kittens. I don't know how common this is, since I've never been to any other vet.
 

blaise

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Originally Posted by Rosiemac

She's in the UK, and here, if a cat goes past it's date for it's yearly shots by approx 3 weeks it isn't covered anymore, which means they have to start from scratch again...
Rosiemac-
When you use the term "covered"....what does that mean...i.e. covered for what?
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by BLAISE

Rosiemac-
When you use the term "covered"....what does that mean...i.e. covered for what?
We might term it up to date.. ie in the UK if the vaccinations are past due by 3 or more weeks they are deemed no longer valid or up to date( am I interprting correctly Susan>>
 

optionken

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'This is something i've talked to my vet about, and as yet there is no proof on this either'

Did you read any of the links provided?

There is a ton of proof out there on this.
Here is a whole group devoted to sarcoma

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/F...ec=group&slk=3

This vet talks about vaccine related illness

http://www.holisticat.com/vaccinations.html

The only reason there is no proof a vaccine will work for the life of your pet
is because no company is going to research something that will end up costing them 99% of their business. There is research oput there though showing for example that rabies works at least 5 years. The study was dropped after that
 

rosiemac

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Theres been lots of threads on the subject here so i've already read up on them.

As i've already said, this is something i've discussed with my vet, and research regarding vaccines being stopped after several years is still being carried out by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, so until they come out and say it's ok to stop the vaccines after that time, i'm listening to my vet
 

nhlee529

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Originally Posted by optionken

'This is something i've talked to my vet about, and as yet there is no proof on this either'

Did you read any of the links provided?

There is a ton of proof out there on this.
Here is a whole group devoted to sarcoma

http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/F...ec=group&slk=3

This vet talks about vaccine related illness

http://www.holisticat.com/vaccinations.html

The only reason there is no proof a vaccine will work for the life of your pet
is because no company is going to research something that will end up costing them 99% of their business. There is research oput there though showing for example that rabies works at least 5 years. The study was dropped after that
I agree that the reason why Vets continue to vaccinate is because of "money"! I've just stopped vaccinating my indoor kitties this year- after all the research and various opinions. I'm just debating on whether to do only rabies for an outdoor kitty that adopted me?

Optionken- What do you think about rabies shot?
 

sharky

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Originally Posted by nhlee529

I agree that the reason why Vets continue to vaccinate is because of "money"! I've just stopped vaccinating my indoor kitties this year- after all the research and various opinions. I'm just debating on whether to do only rabies for an outdoor kitty that adopted me?

Optionken- What do you think about rabies shot?
I would suggest blood titer s and checking LOCAL LAW
 

optionken

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I think that a rabies shot lasts and no booster is needed. My cats are indoor/outdoor having to be in at night an even with ferals around, I am comfortable with them having had there first set of shots as kittens and that being it. I care deeply about my cats and their health.
My cat's health and well being comes before state laws. If it was a state law that every time you saw a newborn kitten it had to be brought in to be euthanized, I wouldn't follow that law either.
As far as vets and money goes, I don't know that they care about the money they make from the vaccine but it does cause people to bring their cat to the vets for checkups alot more often then people normally would.
 

yosemite

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IMO it depends on how much you treasure your cat. Even humans should be getting annual checkups so since cats age "faster" than humans, it only makes sense to have an annual checkup. As for vaccines, if you are in an area, as we are, where rabies vaccines are the law, then if you opt not to have it done and your cat is ever picked up outside or bites anyone, they will take your cat and may even euthanize it. So, as I said, if you want to ensure you don't lose your cat then follow the laws in your area. It's all fine and good to be a rebel, but I personally won't put my cat at risk in a scenario such as that.

There is controversy regarding how long vaccines last so I wouldn't take everything I read on the internet to be God's gospel truth. Often the information is slanted to the belief of the writer of the article which is not necessarily fact.

I honestly think folks take too much stock in internet information and it could be a dangerous thing.
 

optionken

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it only makes sense to have an annual checkup.

I certainly agree


As for vaccines, if you are in an area, as we are, where rabies vaccines are the law, then if you opt not to have it done and your cat is ever picked up outside or bites anyone, they will take your cat and may even euthanize it.

Everything is about risk verse reward. So if you feel the risk of that happening is greater then the risk of sarcoma or hyper T ofr other illnesses from vaccines then by all means get the vaccine

It's all fine and good to be a rebel, but I personally won't put my cat at risk in a scenario such as that.

What does being a rebel have to do with anything? You wouldn't put your cat at risk for being taken by the authorities and I won't put my cats at risk for illness or death for something I do not believe is needed. Thats the choices we make an the op has a right to hear both sides of the story

There is controversy regarding how long vaccines last so I wouldn't take everything I read on the internet to be God's gospel truth. Often the information is slanted to the belief of the writer of the article which is not necessarily fact.

I assume everyone on this board has common sense and realizes that articles and yes even research papers by the scientific community can be slanted. I would be curious though as to why some vets would recommend against vaccinations when it can only hurt their pocketbook and their standing in the vet community
This line is not far different from what a former vet said (the internet people are crazy and don't know anything) before she almost caused me to kill my cat with an insulin overdose. FWIW the 'internet and the lay people posting is what helped me save my cat's life including a few others adopted.
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by optionken

I assume everyone on this board has common sense and realizes that articles and yes even research papers by the scientific community can be slanted. I would be curious though as to why some vets would recommend against vaccinations when it can only hurt their pocketbook and their standing in the vet community
This line is not far different from what a former vet said (the internet people are crazy and don't know anything) before she almost caused me to kill my cat with an insulin overdose. FWIW the 'internet and the lay people posting is what helped me save my cat's life including a few others adopted.
Well now, that's a problem. Some folks who come here as "newbies" are new to owning cats and are looking for guidance. Unfortunately if they take someone's advice not to trust a vet and instead trust what they read on the internet they very well may take that advice. Then if something does happen to harm their cat they can put TCS in a position for a lawsuit by saying they followed the advice they got here.

Everyone is entitled to their OPINION, but advising someone to disregard what their vet says is not recommended on this site. We have recommended that they get a second opinion or even a third from a different vet, but I cannot stress strongly enough that we do NOT recommend following a poster's advice against that of a medical authority.

Yes, there is risk in lots of things - anaesthesia is risky for even the most minor of operations for people and animals - hence why you sign a release form before surgery.

We are required to have rabies shots in our area. Three weeks after Bijou got his shot this year, he was outside and was attacked by something (we believe a racoon) and had a huge abscess that he had to undergo anaethesia to have drained. If he had not had his rabies shot, the vet would have had to report the bite to the authorities and they would have kept Bijou until he was confirmed free of rabies or who knows maybe even euthanasia. So, am I willing to risk the slim chance of sarcoma in order to protect our beloved pet? Yes, you bet I am especially after this incident.

As the other mod said, it is our policy here not to give medical advice since NONE of us are qualified to do so.
 

yosemite

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Originally Posted by optionken

This line is not far different from what a former vet said (the internet people are crazy and don't know anything) before she almost caused me to kill my cat with an insulin overdose. FWIW the 'internet and the lay people posting is what helped me save my cat's life including a few others adopted.
I also said not all vets are created equal and that if one is not confident in their vet they should get a second opinion. You are fairly new to the board so you may not have read all the posts about finding a different vet or getting other opinions, but if you go back and read a bit you'll find lots of posts to that effect.

There are quack doctors and quack vets and just plain quacks. As with everything - shop around.
 

nhlee529

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Originally Posted by sharky

I would suggest blood titer s and checking LOCAL LAW
We don't have a law here that cats must have rabies shot, but I am still concerned because the kitty runs around outside and I don't want other animals to hurt her. I'll look into the titers test, but I doubt my vet will do it... he's a very small establishment. Thanks for the suggestion though.
 
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