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Canine Vaccines and Vaccination Schedule
Canine vaccines and vaccination play an important role in disease prevention and can save lives in young puppies. The purpose of canine vaccination is to stimulate
a dog's body to produce antibodies (germ-fighting proteins made by specialized white blood cells) and "memory" cells, so that if the dog ever encounters the disease
again, his system will be primed and ready to defend against it.
However, it is also a fact that canine vaccines can cause side-effects and very often pose health risks to our dogs. Therefore, it is important for dog parents to
understand clearly what canine vaccines can and cannot do, and whether it is necessary to vaccinate our dogs on a yearly basis.
Before vaccinating your puppy, consider the risks. The decision about vaccinations is very individual, and should be guided by your knowledge on the subject before you go
to the veterinarian.
In this page, you can find information on the following topics:
What are Core and Noncore Vaccines?The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) released a set of canine vaccine guidelines in 2003 (and revised in 2006) regarding canine vaccination. In the revised guidelines, the AAHA classified canine vaccines into core and noncore (optional). According to AAHA, core vaccines are those that all dogs should receive in order to protect against diseases that are more serious or potentially fatal. These diseases are found in all areas of North America and are more easily transmitted than noncore diseases. The AAHA guidelines define the following as core vaccines: distemper, adenovirus, parvovirus, and rabies. Noncore vaccines should be given selectively, depending on a dog's particular geographic and lifestyle exposure. According to the AAHA guidelines, vaccines for kennel cough, Lyme disease, and leptospirosis are noncore vaccines. Back to ListCan Canine Vaccines Prevent Diseases?
Before answering this question, we need to understand that there are two types of disease - acute and chronic.
Acute diseases are generated by an infectious organism - the infection itself creates the illness. Examples of acute diseases are canine distemper, canine
hepatitis, rabies, and canine parvovirus.
Chronic diseases, on the other hand, are usually caused by immune system malfunctioning which can be either immune system overactivity or immunodeficiency.
In the case of immune system overactivity, the immune system attacks the dog's own body systems because it has problems distinguishing between host and foreign tissue.
Chronic diseases resulting from an overactive immune system are called autoimmune diseases.
Chronic diseases can also be caused by immunodeficiency. Although very often, immunodeficiency diseases seem like acute diseases since an organism may be associated
with these diseases, in most cases the organism is NOT the cause. The root cause of immunodeficiency diseases is a weakened immune system and the organism may just be a
trigger that brings on an infection. In other words, illness precedes the infection. Examples of immunodeficiency diseases are kennel cough complex and Lyme
disease.
Returning to the question ... Canine vaccines can only potentially prevent acute diseases but not chronic diseases. As mentioned above, acute diseases are truly
caused by an infectious organism, therefore vaccination can help prevent a dog from getting infected by stimulating the dog's immunity to produce antibodies to fight
against the organism. Even so, bear in mind that vaccines are not 100 percent effective for acute disease prevention.
For chronic diseases, vaccination simply does not work as the true underlying cause is NOT the infectious organism. Only by addressing the underlying cause (i.e.
strengthening or regulating the immune system) can chronic diseases be cured/prevented.
Back to List
Can Canine Vaccines Cause Diseases?Canine vaccinations put a lot of stress on a dog's immune system. More and more holistic veterinarians have reached the conclusion that vaccinations can not only cause immediate side effects and allergic reactions, but they also contribute to a lot of long term chronic health problems, including skin allergies, arthritis, thyroid disease, recurrent ear and respiratory infections, inflammatory bowel disease, neurological conditions (such as aggressive behavior and epilepsy), autoimmune diseases, and cancer. In fact, it has been established that the rabies vaccine can cause cancer at the site of injection (vaccine particles have been found within the cancer mass in a number of cases) and many veterinarians now refer to this type of cancers as vaccine-site sarcomas. Back to ListA Low-Risk Way to Vaccinate Your DogAs canine vaccines can potentially cause a lot of health problems, you may wonder if it is absolutely necessary to vaccinate your dog, and if so, what is the safest approach. Dr. Hamilton, a holistic veterinarian and author of Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs, suggests that we should only vaccinate our dogs against diseases that meet all of the following criteria:
Also, many holistic vets (e.g. Dr. Hamilton and Dr. Pitcairn) stress the importance of using single or simple vaccines instead of the combination vaccines which have
become very common these days. This means vaccinating for one disease at a time. Dr. Hamilton rightly points out that natural exposure to diseases is usually
one at a time, and so the body is more successful at responding to one vaccine at a time and producing immunity without adverse effects.
Where possible, use only "killed" or "inactivated" vaccines as opposed to "modified live" since "killed" vaccines cannot grow in the body and therefore are safer to use.
It can be difficult to find a vet who has single vaccines readily available. You may have more luck if you seek help from a holistic veterinarian.
Back to List
When Not to Vaccinate Your DogAs vaccinations put a lot of stress on your dog's immune system, DO NOT vaccinate your dog if she:
Which Vaccines are Absolutely Necessary?As mentioned above, the AAHA guidelines define distemper, adenovirus, parvovirus, and rabies as core vaccines. Most holistic veterinarians, however, believe that the absolutely essential vaccines are distemper and parvovirus. Rabies vaccination poses a lot of health risks on a dog; however, it is required by law and we do not have too much of a choice. Back to ListAre Yearly "Booster Shots" Necessary?Vaccinations do not magically lose their effectiveness 366 days after the last shot. In fact, studies have shown that the vaccines for parvovirus and canine distemper provide extremely good, long-term protection from the diseases for 8 to 10 years or more. "Booster shots" do not increase a dog's immunity, but they do increase the risk of adverse reactions. There are no benefits and many risks to re-vaccinating for a disease your dog is already immune to. If you want to play it safe, there is a blood test called determining the "titer". It can tell if your dog's antibody levels for parvovirus or canine distemper remain high enough to resist infection. However, even with a low titer, most animals will still retain enough immunity to fight off infection. Parvo and distemper are almost exclusively diseases affecting young puppies, so while puppies definitely need the protection of vaccines, adults do not. Back to ListA Safe Puppy Vaccination ScheduleAn example of a safe puppy vaccination schedule as suggested by Dr. Pitcairn is as follows:
References D. Hamilton, Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs (North Atlantic Books, 1999). Pitcairn and Pitcairn, Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats (Rodale, 2005). AAHA Canine Vaccine Guidelines 2006 (http://www.aahanet.org/PublicDocuments/VaccineGuidelines06Revised.pdf) TOP OF Canine Vaccines and Vaccination |
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