vaccination- article

[Gina Heitz <brier@oregonsbest.com>]

Hi All,

I was going to send you guys a ditty on not over exercising young dogs but 
can't find my file (ugg) but found this one on vaccinations that was 
written by my good friend and your puppies auntie Ellen.  Ellen is a 
Certified Veterinarian Technician and she writes for her breed club  health 
issues.   I have invited her to be on our list as an advisor but right now 
she and Doug are going through a dog trauma of their own.   Their 6 year 
old Beagle Beau just had to have major surgery for a ruptured disc in his 
neck.  So I doubt we will be hearing from Ellen anytime soon.  Ellen and 
Doug have two Beagles they rescued and three Harriers (not 
rescues).  Harrier:  Tall Beagle, <smile>.   Ellen shows in conformation 
with the Harriers and does obedience work too.  Doug has been working in 
agility with Beau and hopes to be able to return Beau to the sport in a 
year or so.  Beau is one of the worlds sweetest Beagles and excels at 
everything he is challenged with.  He has his CD which in hounds is an 
accomplishment.  Hounds put their noses to the ground and are usually 
gone.  Not Beau!  Anyway here is an article Ellen wrote on Vaccinations 
that I think you will find interesting.  I am back to searching for files 
exercising.

Gina


Vaccinations  Are we over doing it or not?

One of the hottest topics in veterinary medicine right now is vaccinations. 
Vaccinations have been widely used for several decades now with great 
success.  Distemper and adenovirus are rarely seen anymore.  Parvovirus 
continues to plague puppies but no longer affects adults, nor does it have 
the devastating effects it had when it first surfaced in the 70's.  The 
questions that are arising now concern the necessity of vaccinating as 
frequently and as heavily as we do.

The problem this issue presents is that there have been very few studies of 
any kind on either side of the issue.  And to further compound the problem, 
most of the studies done have not been of sufficient length.  While there 
are appropriate, long-term studies under way, the data will not be 
available for several years.  There are very knowledgeable and respected 
opinions on the varied issues concerning vaccination, but even most of them 
state that more research is needed.

A vaccine works by introducing an antigen into the system of the dog.  An 
antigen is a substance that will stimulate an immune response and thus 
create an antibody.  Antibodies attack the antigen and render it harmless 
to the body.  Once the body has created antibodies, it retains a 'memory' 
of that antibody and can produce it if that antigen is detected again.  The 
'memory' only lasts a certain amount of time.  And therein lies a big issue 
for our current vaccines.  How long does a dog's body maintain the 'memory' 
for each antigen?  This question can be answered in a couple of different 
ways. One is by long-term studies that will create average 'memory life 
span'. (These are called 'Duration of Immunity' studies an are only 
required for rabies vaccine.) The other is by conducting titers on your 
dogs.  A vaccine titer is done by drawing blood from your dog and sending 
it to the appropriate laboratory.  There it will be tested to see how well 
the antibody memory is functioning.  While these tests are a little 
challenging to decipher they may tell your veterinarian if your dog has an 
acceptable level of protection against disease.  Currently, titers are 
expensive, certainly far more than the vaccines, but should running titers 
become more popular, it may be possible to lower the price.  Check with 
your veterinarian for prices in your area.

One of the issues involved with vaccination is that we are over-vaccinating 
and this may be causing such problems as auto-immune hemolytic anemia in 
dogs and vaccine-associated fibro-sarcomas in cats, as well as other immune 
related diseases.  Another is that we are vaccinating for diseases which no 
longer pose a threat or do not pose a threat in certain geographical 
areas.  For example, leptospirosis rarely occurs on the west coast however, 
it is fairly common in the North-eastern area of the USA, yet will still 
routinely vaccinate against it in this area.

Some veterinarians and veterinary schools have adopted new vaccination 
protocols specific to the geographical area and the individual pet.  These 
new protocols encourage less frequent vaccinations and vaccines tailored to 
your area and your pet's exposure risk.  For example, at Colorado State 
University, they now advocate (for their geographical area and with full 
examination of the pet) the standard 3 shot series for puppies including 
parvo, adenovirus, parainfluenza, and distemper, but excluding 
leptospirosis and coronavirus.  After the puppy series, the dog will be 
boostered one year later, and then every three years, as opposed to every 
year.  Bordetella (intranasal) vaccine is recommended on an 'at risk' basis.

Yet another question revolves around the use of the 'combo' vaccines.  Some 
feel that these simply aren't healthy and provide far too much stress on 
the immune system.  It is possible to break up the vaccines into several 
different components and also give them at different times.  For example, 
rather than giving the standard DA2LPP-C (distemper, adenovirus, 
leptospirosis, parainfluenza, parvo and corona), you can give a DA2PP and 
give the remaining components at a later date.  It is also becoming a 
popular recommendation to not give more than one type of vaccine at a 
time.  For example, if your dog is due for rabies, DA2LPP-C, and 
bordetella, you may want to give each vaccine a month apart.

I've barely touched the surface of this issue, and as you can see, it is 
fairly complex.  There are many other issues about which I have not 
written, due to lack of space.   At this point, until the data from the 
long-term studies is available, each dog-owner needs to make decisions 
about their pets' vaccinations in concert with their veterinarian.  You may 
want to discuss the issue with several veterinarians as there are many 
viewpoints.  Then take that information and decide what you are comfortable 
with.  Keep in mind that if you board your dogs at commercial kennels, or 
attend dog obedience or other classes, they may still require the standard 
vaccinations.  Also, rabies vaccination is controlled by your state or 
province and you must vaccinate your dog against rabies according to the 
laws that govern your area.

For a suggested reading list on this topic, please visit 
http:www/cvmbs/colostate.edu/vth/savp2.html

By Ellen Parr CVT