What we Need to Know about the Canine Vaccines

This aim of this blog is to give you the power of choice through educating you on the canine vaccines.  The resources provided are from highly respected and trusted integrative vets so that you can make informed choices for your pet.  We want you as pet parents to make these important choices confidently, armed with as much information as you can get!

How do Vaccines Work?

It’s helpful to understand how the vaccines work in the body.  What vaccines do is they mimic the targeted virus or bacteria, stimulating the immune system to create the necessary antibodies to fight against the virus or bacteria. So, this is not a conversation about vaccines being ‘bad’ as much as understanding what they do, when they ARE needed and when they AREN’T.  Next, let’s move on to the different types of vaccines:

Core vs Non-Core

Core vaccines are the ones that protect your dog against viruses such as parvo, distemper and canine hepatitis.  They are the most effective of the vaccines and can protect your dog for a long time (potentially for life – more on this later) when given after the age of 4mnths.

Non-core vaccines are a separate category because their efficacy is not as long lasting as the core vaccines. Read this info by world renowned and respected Integrative Veterinarian Dr Judy Morgan on Kennel Cough and the vaccine: https://drjudymorgan.com/blogs/blog/kennel-cough

What’s vitally important to know is, the vaccine your dog needs will be different to what another dog needs based on their environment and lifestyle.  Giving vaccines as a blanket rule doesn’t take into account the specifics of the dog as an individual.  For example whether your dog is a chihuahua or a rottweiler, the same amount of vaccine is administered.

There is such a thing as ‘Over Vaccination’

When we know the potential effects of vaccinating, we can begin the journey of educating ourselves on what ‘over vaccination’ looks like and whether there are indeed other approaches that we may not know about.  Vaccines, like any medication, come with side effects.  Let’s take a look at what those are for our dogs.

What are the Side Effects?

Some of the side effects of vaccinations are:

-            Fever

-            Vomiting

-            Diarrhea

-            Lethargy

-            Anaphylactic reaction

-            Tumours

-            Hives

-            Swelling

Below you will find a list of blogs and videos on over vaccination from well-respected integrative vets.  This is the kind of information that can make all the difference in our pets lives:

Over-vaccination

Is Your Pet Over-Vaccinated? – Dr. Judy Morgan's Naturally Healthy Pets – Dr Judy Morgan

https://www.facebook.com/doctor.karen.becker/videos/does-your-pet-need-these-vaccines/10155550559062748/  - Dr Karen Becker

https://www.facebook.com/doctor.karen.becker/videos/does-your-pet-need-these-vaccines/10155550559062748/ - Dr Karen Becker

https://www.facebook.com/PlanetPawsMedia/videos/1404799696261575/  - Planet Paws

Avoiding Over-Vaccination with Titer Testing

Titer is a test which can be used to establish whether or not your dog is adequately protected against the viruses that our dogs are vaccinated against.  A titer test measures the existence and level of antibodies.  With this information we can establish how ‘protected’ your dog is, and whether or not another vaccine is necessafy.  Doing a titer test helps pet parents make informed decisions on whether their pet needs the extra or repeat vaccines.

Titer Tests

https://www.facebook.com/PlanetPawsMedia/videos/1519336068141270/?ref=embed_post  - Planet Paws

https://www.facebook.com/PlanetPawsMedia/videos/842358219657943/?mibextid=KsPBc6&rdid=3uzc08qAxG4Z9BgV  - Dr Karen Becker

Key Takeaways

What we need to understand from the above information is that there is great value in initial vaccines, but potential hazards in over vaccinating. We always empower ourselves through educating ourselves first, so please make sure you do your research and understand all pros and cons of the canine vaccines for your beloved pet.