Vaccinations: the why, when & how - Natural Health 4 Dogs
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Vaccinations: the why, when & how
Vaccinations: Why, When and How
There are three ways a dog can acquire immunity from infectious diseases:
- Receiving antibodies from the mother; through the placenta or in the colostrums produced by the mother for the first couple of days after birth when the puppies suckle
- By catching a disease and recovering from it
- By vaccination to prevent contraction of a particular disease
Immunity from the mother is known as passive immunity. Puppies will only have immunity to those diseases their mother is immune to and whatever immunity they gain will be short-lived which is why there is a specific timeline for vaccinations and boosters.
Active immunity comes from vaccination or recovery from a disease. Some diseases are very serious and can be difficult to overcome, particularly for puppies that won’t have developed a strong immune system, and others can’t be cured at all, for example, rabies. Vaccination to prevent the spread of the worst diseases is the better course of action.
A vaccination is made up of a tiny amount of an infectious disease which is ‘modified’ so that it is less virulent than in its natural state and known as MLV or Modified Live Virus. The MLV is then injected under the skin to produce an immune system response by the body to kill the organism and recognise and defeat any future attack by the same organism.
There are usually other ingredients in the vaccine: an adjuvant to kick start the immune system response, an animal protein upon which the disease organism was grown, and a preservative although this is only necessary for those money-saving multi-dose vaccines. There is also a small chance of contaminants of an unknown nature.
A dog should only be vaccinated when it is in good health so that the immune system can concentrate on battling the introduced organism. Vaccinating an already sick dog will overwhelm the immune system, and no right-minded vet would do so.
Core vaccinations are those that all dogs should have to give them immunity to the most common and life-threatening diseases. In South Africa the core vaccinations will protect against Canine Distemper, Adenovirus type one (infectious canine hepatitis) and type two (respiratory disease), Canine Parvovirus infection and Rabies. Rabies is a zoonotic disease meaning it can be transmitted from animals to humans and vaccination against it is required by law in many countries.
Non-core vaccinations are available for other diseases such as kennel cough and leptospirosis, but there are so many different strains of these diseases that vaccination is likely to be ineffective. Discuss the pros and cons of these vaccinations with your vet before making a decision and only vaccinate if the risk of your dog contracting a disease is high.
The South African Veterinarian Association (SAVA) recommends the following timeline for vaccinating puppies:
- First vaccination for Distemper, Parvovirus, and Adenovirus at 8 to 9 weeks
- Second vaccination for the above plus rabies at 11 to 12 weeks
- Boosters for all four diseases at 14 to 16 weeks
- Boosters for all four diseases at one year old
- Revaccinations for all four diseases every three years after that
It is usually better for the vaccinations to be given separately with three weeks between rabies and the combined vaccine as this may help reduce the risk of your dog suffering an adverse reaction. Medications for ticks, fleas, and worms may also interfere with vaccines so allow a three-week gap after any of these.
The World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) Vaccination Guidelines 2015 point out that, “ ... in many countries, the majority of core MLV vaccines are now licensed for triennial revaccination of adult animals. However, there are many other countries in which the identical products still carry a 1-year minimum Duration Of Immunity (DOI); simply because the manufacturer has not applied for a change in its product label recommendations or because the national licensing authority has not permitted the change to be made. This unfortunate situation does lead to confusion amongst practitioners in those countries. Above all, it must be remembered that even a 3-year license is a minimum DOI for core vaccines and for most core vaccines the true DOI is likely to be considerably longer, if not lifelong, for the majority of vaccine recipients.”
These guidelines arm you with important information because many vets advise annual vaccinations for the rest of your pup’s life and most of the time it is not necessary. Having an annual vaccination will not increase the immunity of an already immune dog, but it will add needless strain to the immune system, liver, and kidneys which have to deal with all the other ingredients in the vaccine. Ask about titer-testing to check whether another vaccination is necessary.