anti-vaccination - Page 2

lovemahkitties - I apologize for saying bats 'aren't allowed' in my house... when I responded to the thread earlier, I was in a hurry and was skimming the posts and didn't see that part on yours where a bat actually did come into your house! I'm sure I came across as insensitive and my sincerest apologies!

I hear this quite often though - "what if a bat comes in the house?" I never really thought it would be probable or even possible for a bat to get in the house. So your account does give me food for thought. However, I see several "ifs" here... if a bat got in my house, if I wasn't aware of the bats presence before my cats were, if the bat had rabies and if the bat bit my cat.

So far, I haven't heard any stories/news of bats making their way into a home and biting a cat (or other animal) and transmitting rabies. Not to say that this sort of thing never could or ever did happen, and with all due respect, I certainly do not want to down-play your experience - that would be a scare!

With that said, I have made a website in memory of my precious girl and have had quite a number of people contact me and tell me the same thing has happened to their cat or dog - a reaction to a vaccine (most accounts have been rabies) leading to death.

Certainly either situation - bat bite leading to rabies leading to death or reaction to a vaccination leading to death are both tragic. I have the stance that I do though because of the terrible loss I have had as well as numerous other accounts from other pet-parents.

I am very leary of vaccs too. I only get rabies vaccs for my 5 cats.

It was only a month or so ago that I started getting the rabies vacs. I always figured that since my cats are indoor only (3 are afraid of outside) and too skittish to bite any guest, that there is only a very slim chance of them getting rabies. Which is true, but since I followed a thread on here where a cat bit a vet, and wasn't utd on rabies, the cat had to be quarintined for 15 days. The vet had to report the bite to animal control because it was the law in that state. In some states the animal can be put down for this, and some charge fines too.

After reading that thread, I realized that even though my cats will probably never get rabies, they may bite a vet (think about a cat in major pain, in an emergency) or someone, and it gets reported to Animal Control, who either puts your cat in quarintine for 15+ days OR even puts the cat to sleep.

I unerstand everyones view on this, I have a phobia of my cats getting VAS from shots, but I feel that it is more likely that they bite a vet (when in pain) than them getting VAS. But it is vertainly a very close call. This is the only shot I give.

I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but I would like to share something that my husband told me early this morning when he read this thread over my shoulder.

When my hubby about 16 (right before I met him) his parents were working on separation. His father came to the house to get his things out, with a police escort. There was a BRAND NEW sign on the gate that said "Beware of dog", and my hubby's Spitz was very clearly growling at the police officer before the cop got anywhere close to the gate. The officer chose to ignore the sign, the clear message from the dog, AND my MIL's warning. She asked the cop to give her a chance to leash the dog, but the officer went through the gate before she could grab the dog. Obviously, the Spitz bit him. And of course, she wasn't vaccinated.

Even though there were MULTIPLE warnings given to the man, he chose to come inside the gate anyway, inviting the attack. The dog was put down the same day, as per city law, and a necropsy was performed on her brain, to see if she had rabies.

You cannot control what other people choose to do. Even a leashed animal can be approached by people who refuse to listen to you or to your pet's warning signs. A child of your friends or relatives could come over and corner the cat. Children especially have trouble recognizing the danger from animals. What would happen if a 2 or 3 year old cornered one of your pets, got bitten, and then your pet had to be quarantined, or god forbid put down?

Even enclosed porches aren't foolproof. A raccoon can easily shred screens. Rabid dogs have jumped through glass windows before. Even when there is not a current rabies outbreak in an area, all it takes is one dog, or coyote, or bat or squirrel to enter into an area where the population is NOT vaccinated. Without vaccinations, rabies can spread like wildfire, crossing county lines in a matter of weeks, even days. (This information given to me by a game warden) And keep in mind that in most areas, people don't go out and test random samples of the wild population for rabies. There may not be any DOCUMENTED cases, but I assure you, out there somewhere there are at least a few cases.

To me this really is not worth the risk of avoiding vaccinations.

I don't think it's necessarily about the bat biting a cat - but a cat chasing the bat and potentially killing the bat and eating it, then contracting rabies.

Even if it wasn't mandated in my county, I would keep my kitties up to date with rabies. What if they would be unintentionally provoked by a child (or stressed at the vets) and bite someone out of character? If they're up to date, I wouldn't have to worry about them being quarantined or PTS (or myself being sued!!!!!) That said, if something awful would happen due to the vaccine, I would feel awful... but I would also feel awful if a bat got into the house and I saw my kitties eating it and then having them die because of rabies that I could've prevented with a vaccine...

i may be getting way off topic here (sorry!)... but, as you probably know, those who easily dealt with the chickenpox virus as children continue to carry that particular herpes virus throughout their lives, and it can express itself as shingles in later life.

a good friend of mine contracted chickenpox at the ripe old age of 33 from an adult with a shingles outbreak. chickenpox in an adult is not always a simple affair, as it frequently involves more than just surface skin lesions. he spent over a week in the hospital in critical care with pneumonia and lesions in his mouth and throat which made it nearly impossible to swallow and breathe. in adults, chickenpox can have lethal complications.

i would have to assume that by eliminating the spread of the virus by vaccine, these more serious cases would be eliminated.

again, it may be a rare situation, but where do we draw the line? when do vaccinations become 'worth it'? the answer is different for all of us, because it is determined by our own personal experiences and knowledge, no?

no worries angel! i wasn't at all offended, just didn't want to leave the impression that i was living in a house where bats were frequent and welcome guests! haha...

btw, i checked out seven's site. what a sweet and beautiful little girl! (i have a dilute torti as well) i'm so so sorry for what you both endured, and again... i wouldn't feel differently than you had i had your experience. you've done her memory well with your site

My vet basically wants only kitten and one booster ... Unless they are indoor outdoor ... In my area ONLY the bat in known to be rabid.... My vet gently explained she did not want me calling her in a few yrs saying Zoey had a bat in her mouth now what?... Zoey did get a rabies shot

There is ample evidence that the rabies vaccine confers immunity for at least 7 years, if given after 6 months of age. So I don't worry about my cats actually getting rabies, even if they are exposed (by a bat in the house or whatever). If I had more guests, I might keep them up-to-date for legal reasons. It's something that should be carefully considered on a case-by-case basis.

Check out THIS website: http://www.critteradvocacy.org It is written by a vet and it will tell you all you need to know about vaccinations.

My cats do NOT get vaccinated (though if there was a vet who would do intra/ultra nasal one's I would) as I lost my beloved Corkie to cancer caused by her VAS that took her leg!

Your link says what I have been saying all along, that the non adjuvanted vaccines are much safer.

The Purevax rabies vaccine is the only vaccine used around here these days.

(this was written in 2003)

My cat had bad side affects from vaccines last year when she was four months old.

Hello, I am anti-vaccination, the reason being that my favourite cat has suffered from cancer due to a vaccination she received as a kitten.
She has now several sarcomas on and around the vaccination site and according to a number of doctors the causes were trauma to the site and an allergic reaction to the vaccine. My understanding is that there was something wrong with the drug itself but you will be relieved to hear that this didn't happen in the US. Her original vet was more of a butcher than a doctor -thankfully I have met many dedicated animal loving vets here in the US that have kept her alive and in a good quality of life so far.

I'm sure the occurance is quite rare but it puts me off getting any vaccines for any of my cats except those required by law.