Cat Vaccines ???

[DJWolford]

So just to be upfront about this, scold me if you like, i have 5 cats. The mom is probably 5-6 years old and all the "kittens" are about 3.5.
Never be Vax'd, i do let them go outside and they stay in a very limited area around my home.

i want to get them all vaccinated because i got scared last winter when one of my cats got sick, didnt have FHIV or Fleuikemia he just got a cold basically? the vet didnt know i still dont know but hes all good now.


i dont want to do low cost Vax if i dont have to, i just dont want to get ripped off and pay $600+ for some things i didnt need.


Main Question

Im sort of unclear about what i really need to get. The two local vets i called seemed to throw in some additional things and i just want to be clear on what i NEED and what i dont need. so literally is it just the 3-4 main vaccines plus rabies?
is a dewormer necessary?
both local vets gave me a pretty solid cost of $125/cat.... does that seem right?? (Los Angeles)

Additionally, the last vet i talked to told me these vaccines need to be done yearly.... is that really true? I dont think shes a liar i just was suprised that vaccines supposedly only last a year.

I do not have pet insurance, ill be paying out of pocket, i can afford it, i just dont want to waste money unnecessarily so any and all advice would be great

Thanks!!

 

[Kieka]

Check out Spay Neuter Project LA for vaccine clinics and to get an appointment, Locations. According to their website prices are: "At the walk-in vaccine clinic: Rabies $12, FVRCP $16, FeLV $16" Affordable Vaccines

Those three are the bare minimum an outdoor cat should have. Some shots are yearly, others are every three years. There is some debate on if we are vaccinating too frequently but when you are talking cats with outdoor access I lean towards I'd rather over protect then under protect. Usually clinics are subsidized so their prices are lower than a traditional vet, not because they are lower quality or bad versions. Granted your vet might be using Purevax which the shelters don't always use that has fewer side effect. As to the cost, I am in not too far from LA and I pay my cat only small vet usually $40-60 per vaccine (they get Purevax which can have less risk of side effects), they get them on schedule because they do go outside too. Ours are the longer lasting ones and I couldn't tell you which because my vet tells me to vaccinate and I do, so no help on that front. The only reason I don't use a clinic is that I usually get the vaccines during their annual check up (when it's time) and I don't want to pack them up twice just to save some money.

Just because they stay near the house doesn't mean other cats don't come near your house. I once had a rabbit who caught an unknown illness from (we suspect) a rat or squirrel who went over their area. Not a fun experience, our rabbit had lasting damage, and the rabbit never left our yard.

 

[shebaa]

If it was me, I would do all vaccines.. rabies, felv, and rvrcp shots with deworming. I believe its just those 3. With rabies, vet can do either 1 year dose or a 3 year dose. The fvrcp one is every 3 years. Not sure about the felv, it wasnt required for my last kitty since she was indoor cat and the only cat. Deworming is every 6 months. These schedules are for adult cats though. Average $ in my area is rabies- $20. felv and fvrcp both $30 each. And dewormer $15

 

[Willowy]

Honestly, at that age I'd probably skip the FeLV vaccine. Adult cats have a fairly decent natural immunity to it, and if they haven't gotten it yet it's probably not in the neighborhood. Kittens under 18 months are very susceptible; I'd get it done for kittens that go outside.

They should be de-wormed about every 3-6 months, optimally. Eating wild prey exposes them to a lot of parasites. So if that hasn't been done before, I'd definitely do it now.

Otherwise, just FVCRP and rabies vaccines. Legally speaking, you may want to do the rabies vaccine as often as legally required (may be 1 year, may be 3 years), but FVCRP ought to last at least 3 years. But "shots are due" is an easy way to get kitties in for a checkup so that's the main reason vets say they should get shots annually.

Are they spayed/neutered? I mean, I assume so or you'd have 50 cats instead of 5, lol. Usually the vet/clinic that does the spay/neuter also vaccinates them. It might be in their paperwork, best to check that out before you go to the vet.

 

[DJWolford]

Honestly, at that age I'd probably skip the FeLV vaccine. Adult cats have a fairly decent natural immunity to it, and if they haven't gotten it yet it's probably not in the neighborhood. Kittens under 18 months are very susceptible; I'd get it done for kittens that go outside.

They should be de-wormed about every 3-6 months, optimally. Eating wild prey exposes them to a lot of parasites. So if that hasn't been done before, I'd definitely do it now.

Otherwise, just FVCRP and rabies vaccines. Legally speaking, you may want to do the rabies vaccine as often as legally required (may be 1 year, may be 3 years), but FVCRP ought to last at least 3 years. But "shots are due" is an easy way to get kitties in for a checkup so that's the main reason vets say they should get shots annually.

Are they spayed/neutered? I mean, I assume so or you'd have 50 cats instead of 5, lol. Usually the vet/clinic that does the spay/neuter also vaccinates them. It might be in their paperwork, best to check that out before you go to the vet.

Thank you! i will get the leukemia vaccine anyway... (no downsides right), really for my own piece of mind.

theyre all spayed and neutered i truly cant remember if they did vaccines too but maybe they offered and i cant remember.

more to the point you're highly recommending FVCRP, rabies vax and dewormer... and ill throw in the FeLV And all of that makes a lot of sense and i think i have a very good of idea of what i need now... so thank you!

 

[Antonio65]

Im sort of unclear about what i really need to get. The two local vets i called seemed to throw in some additional things and i just want to be clear on what i NEED and what i dont need. so literally is it just the 3-4 main vaccines plus rabies?
is a dewormer necessary?
both local vets gave me a pretty solid cost of $125/cat.... does that seem right?? (Los Angeles)

In my opinion, if your cats have access to the outside, I would do all the vaccines, rcp and leuko for sure, rabies if required in your area.
Dewormer: I use the usual spot on products once a month or 6 weeks.
The cost depends on the area one lives. To our standards (Italy) $125 is a lot of money, we do all the vaccines for €50. The spot on dewormer and anti-parasites is €8.

Additionally, the last vet i talked to told me these vaccines need to be done yearly.... is that really true? I dont think shes a liar i just was suprised that vaccines supposedly only last a year.

Some vaccines last a year, other three or more years.
The typical plan is vaccines today, a booster a month later for all of them. Then a first booster a year later. Form this moment the next ones will be done according to the manufacturer's instructions.
The Leuko vaccine for my cats lasts one year, the rcp one last three years.
The vet told me that a new antibodies test is available to assess if the vaccine is really necessary, because according to some new guidelines, some cats still have antibodies up to 9 years later.

 

[She's a witch]

The official AAFP guidelines for FVCRP is “not more frequently than every 3 years”. So yeah, definitely not every year. Not sure about the booster though, if they have never been vaccinated, they may require it after a year, but after that, again, no more frequently than every 3 years. In practice, they most likely last longer, some for life, but if your cats go outside, I’d repeat it every several years.