Opting not to vaccinate indoor cats- Opinions?

I have heard a lot about issues with over-vaccinating pets (I hear it more thru the Chinese Crested forums, as our breed is prone to vaccine reactions)

All 4 cats are indoors, I have no plans of adding more cats.

All of them are at least 3-4 years old, so they've all had vaccines a few times.

Would it be acceptable to not vaccinate? I hardly see the purpose of over-vaccinating my pets when they have very limited exposure to disease anyways. I'd still have to do rabies because it is required by law.

Does anyone else skip vaccines on their indoor cats?

I do.....there is ample evidence that vaccines give immunity for at least 5-7 years, possibly for life if given after 6 months of age.

I don't agree with NEVER vaccinating but I also don't agree with vaccinating yearly. Humans aren't vaccinated yearly.

Even if rabies vaccination was not the law, I would definately have my cats get it. Always fatal in cats and humans. My daughter had a bat get in her house. Luckily it was not rabid, but sure gave them a scare.

I do not vaccinate for FLV. Have heard nasty things about it. Many opinions on this subject.

I am probably in the minority here but I haven't had my almost 3 yr old girls vaccinated since their kitten series. Both developed temporary lumps at the injection site of their rabies vaccine so I'm really scared for them to have any more. They are 100% house cats and have absolutely no interest in outside so this helped me come to this decision.

Originally Posted by auchick

I am probably in the minority here but I haven't had my almost 3 yr old girls vaccinated since their kitten series. Both developed temporary lumps at the injection site of their rabies vaccine so I'm really scared for them to have any more. They are 100% house cats and have absolutely no interest in outside so this helped me come to this decision.

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Rabies is the one vaccine you don't want to do without, regardless of whether it is law or not. Not only for your cat's protection, because no one ever does know what's going to happen but because in case of an emergency, you will need proof of rabies to bring your cat in to an ER, and if your cat bites someone you will need proof of up to date rabies.

read this thread if you need more convincing:

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=209933

As for the other shots, my cats get the three year distemper until they turn ten, and the annual purevax rabies, forever.

I don't do any of the others, indoor only cats do not need the feline leukemia vaccine and no one should ever give their cat the FIV vaccine. There's no proof it works, AND once vaccinated for FIV a cat will test positive for FIV. Should he get lost and picked up and tested, he most likley would be put to sleep when tested positive for FIV.

In case of a disaster, without a valid rabies vaccination, your cat may be euthanized immediately and without your permission or even your knowledge. Imagine a fire at your house; the firemen save your cats, but get bitten by one of them.

Or a tornado, and you have to go to the shelter. No animals admitted without rabies vaccination.

There are lots of scenarios.

I really struggle with this issue. I have a cat that has Feline Herpes which manifests itself as conjunctivitis and URI. She's now 4 and every single time she's gotten the FVRCP (or whatever those letters are) booster, she's gotten an URI within 2 weeks. It then takes 6-8 weeks for her to get over that.So, I've decided that she's NEVER going to get the FVRCP shot again, unless they take out the FVR part. She's also susceptible to the "C" part of the shot, the calicivirus, which is another reason why she won't be getting that shot. The last time she had a rabies shot, which was 2 years ago, she developed a mass at the injection site. It's not bad, but now I'm worrying she's got some kind of carcinoma at the injection site. Since she's not had shots in a year, she's been the healthiest since we got her! This year, she'll go have at least a rabies shot and I'm debating whether to get the 3 year or the 1 year.

My other cat has kidney problems, arthritis, and is at least 13 years old. She's had shots almost every year that I've had her. A couple of years ago, I opted to not give her the FVRCP shot, just the rabies. Goodness! I've never heard such outcry from the vet's office and I've been taking her there for at least 6 or 7 years, so they know I'm a good pet parent! I explained to them that she's not at much risk, she's had the shot every year since I've had her (11 yrs) and that she's in good health. She NEVER goes outside and she's not exposed to other cats. I also explained to them that she probably still has enough of the vaccine from the previous years in her system that she was in good shape. So, for the past 2 years she's not gotten the FVRCP. This past February, she got the 3-yr. rabies. She's due again for her annual check up in a couple of months where she will NOT have ANY shots and she'll get her blood drawn to check her kidneys. She'll also have the cataract on her eye checked out, which we've been monitoring the past 4 years.

All of this to say, it depends on the cat and discuss it with the vet.

I would PREFER to only get the rabies vaccine since I have an indoor only cat, but unfortunately the only feline only vet practice around here requires one of the combo shots, I can't remember which one it is and I would have to dig out his file.

So it is up to you, the law, and your vet of choice on what you want to give to your cat.

Since I enjoy the convienence of being able to attend a feline only vet practice, I weighed the pros against the cons and went for the second shot as well.

Nothing but the rabies for my indoor kitties, ever, and I wouldn't give that if it weren't required.

IMO, definitely rabies, and I suggest talking to your vet about current vaccination protocols, titer testing, and discussing exactly how exposed your kitties are to any variables - such as, keep those windows open? Kitty ever go out in the yard, or on the porch? You ever go outside the home and handle other animals? What does the vet do for his/her own cats?

BTW, I'd discuss heartworm protection as well with the vet - they're now seeing it up north, even in indoor kitties.

And, IMO, not giving shots, should you and the vet decide that's the way to go, does not mean skipping wellness checks and any recommended tests, depending on the age of the cat.

Many vets push yearly vaccines because people do not bring their cats to the vets annually for check ups without the vaccine reminders, at 3-4 I would still give them another vaccine and do rabies annually, even for the older cats (Autumn has been in quarantine before, without the rabies vacc certificate, she may have been euthanised)

Originally Posted by darlili

IMO, definitely rabies, and I suggest talking to your vet about current vaccination protocols, titer testing, and discussing exactly how exposed your kitties are to any variables - such as, keep those windows open? Kitty ever go out in the yard, or on the porch? You ever go outside the home and handle other animals? What does the vet do for his/her own cats?

BTW, I'd discuss heartworm protection as well with the vet - they're now seeing it up north, even in indoor kitties.

And, IMO, not giving shots, should you and the vet decide that's the way to go, does not mean skipping wellness checks and any recommended tests, depending on the age of the cat.

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Originally Posted by nekkiddoglady

I have heard a lot about issues with over-vaccinating pets (I hear it more thru the Chinese Crested forums, as our breed is prone to vaccine reactions)

All 4 cats are indoors, I have no plans of adding more cats.

All of them are at least 3-4 years old, so they've all had vaccines a few times.

Would it be acceptable to not vaccinate? I hardly see the purpose of over-vaccinating my pets when they have very limited exposure to disease anyways. I'd still have to do rabies because it is required by law.

Does anyone else skip vaccines on their indoor cats?

Click to expand...

I do too. I get them their initial vaccines but forgo the yearly ones. My vet told me that because my cats are indoors and aren't around other animals and I am not routinely around other animals, that it isn't necessary to vaccinate my girls.

If I have to board them for some reason, or take them with me on a trip, then I'll have to get them their distemper and rabies, but until then, they don't get vaccinated.

In MOST areas ONLY rabies is Required or recommended...

I give the kitten series then the booster and then rabies is discussed with my vet as is the 3 in1 shot depending on if they EVER venture outside ( currently only one does)... IMHO stay within the laws of YOUR area ... NOTE some cities require more than the state