Do you vaccinate your animals?

I use to, but I have stopped. I think if I would not vaccinate myself, why would I my dogs?

 

I respect your choice and understand where you are coming from; but for me, I would feel worse than terrible if anything should happened to one of my dogs if they contracted a preventable disease due to my choice not to vaccinate.

Nonetheless, I do worry though that they may have adverse side-effects or complications from their vaccinations, but even so, I believe the benefits out way the risks, since I have seen more than one dog/puppy or cat/kitten (young and old) at out local shelter die horribly from a preventable affliction and it always makes me so very, very sad.

 

I wouldnt vaccinate my children
I dont vaccinate my bunnies

 

I don't vaccinate my kids or myself, and I don't vax my pets either.

BUT we only have guinea pigs... and they're never outdoors so their chance of picking something up is practically nonexistant. When we have a large dog, I will have to do a bit more research... as I'm not sure what the risks are both ways.
love,
mom

 

For the dogs to be legally licensed, they much be vaccinated against Rabies. If I want to board them, they must be current on Parvo, Bordatella, etc. If there is an emergency and they must be boarded, I don't want anything to prevent that. Though the chances of that happening are slim, I'm usually one to err on the side of caution. The cats, too.

Rats, rabbit and toads though, no.

So, yes.

 

If your dog visits the same dog park as mine, I'd appreciate it if you vaccinated yours.
Thanks.

 

If yours are vaccinated already, why the worry?

 

I vaccinate all my animals because I love them and I want them to stay healthy and happy. I would feel so horrible if any one of them contracted a life-threatening (but preventable) disease - ex: lyme disease, parvo, rabies,etc - that could have been prevented had they been vaccinated.

Now, I can understand not vaccinating your cat or dog or something that never leaves the house and is never exposed to any outside elements. (what a horrible way to live, btw) .. But if you are not vaccinating them and they are outside animals that are exposed to outside elements you are just asking for trouble.... I have known lots of people who didn't vaccinate their animals and the animals were kept outside.. some died of parvo, one died of lyme disease.. horrible isn't it? Their animals died just because they didn't vaccinate them! and what makes it so much more disheartening is these animals didn't have to die!
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Exactly what i was going to say!

 

It sounds like some of you people believe theres only good in that vaccine. Like just the vaccine. Im sure thats not true and you realise the horrors injected into the animals though

 

My boy was vaccinated when he was a pup because in the valley where we lived, Parvo was a HUGE concern for puppies. After that though, we never bothered, and he was perfectly healthy!
His new mommy also won't have him vaccinated again until he gets neutered, because it's required, but that's all. No more for him after that! (he's 2½)

But then, I (and his new mommy) also believe that it isn't right to keep an animal outside and/or expose them to other wild animals that may carry diseases. While he wouldn't hesitate to follow our cats or any other dogs around and try to play, he knew to stay away from skunks, raccoons, etc. and he was NEVER chained where he couldn't get away if threatened, he was allowed to roam free all day (with the door open to come and go as he pleased in the house) and he spent every night inside the house. The only other animals he ran off to play with were another big dog and twi shih-tzu's down the street, also free-roamers on our empty secluded back road.

 

My dogs were vaccinated when they were young but we dont vaccinate anymore, one is 10 yrs and hasnt been for 8 yrs and the other is 2 and hasnt been since her first set... I wont leave them outside so I see no need...

 

i dont vaccinate my animals because i do believe they do more harm than good.
i often hear that it is safer if the animal is kept indoors etc, but i disagree.
the animal that has been taken out and about since a young age, in places that are used by others gains natural immunity the way mother nature intended.
the animal that has been kept in is denied this, but should the owner bring something in, the animal has little to no immunity.
neither would i walk a young pup in a dog park frequented by many recently vaccinated animals, as the amount of shed vaccine in feces (sp?) is enough to risk overwhelming a young pups system. would i walk an older pup or an adult there? you betcha!
i start my pups exercise outdoors the day i bring them home, and work up from places frequented by a few dogs to places where there are many dogs. just as would happen in the wild wolf pack. the cubs start off in the den and become used to whatever bugs mum brings home, to wandering outside the den with a few of the adults, to being out with the whole pack.
there are many side effects to the vaccines, but the only reactions reported are the immediate ones, anaphalactic shock for example.
sudden aggression, excessive fearfulness for example are classic rabies vaccinosis symptoms.
there has been a marked increase in cardio myopathy (sp?) since the increased use of the parvo vax. parvo in its nastiest form attacks the heart. should we trade the chance of an acute (but generally curable if treated promptly and correctly) disease for the chance of a chronic but incurable severely debilitating disease?
leptospirosis is a nasty disease indeed, but how many vets will tell you that the vax only covers one strain?
kennel cough isnt nice, but all but the very weak, ie tiny pups and elderly infirm dogs will heal themselves within a week or so! the vaccine induced cough however is much more difficult to treat, often lasting a month or more. and all that for the chance of being protected from a few of the MANY MANY strains of bordatella!
another thing that really gripes me is the insistence of yearly boosters! does the immunity stop magically after 365 days? i think not!
the vaccine companies rely on titre testing, a test which will determine the levels of active antibodies in the bloodstream at the time of testing. a year or so after a vax, the levels will have dropped, so it is assumed that the level of protection will also have dropped. not so. antibodies will circulate the blood stream immediately after exposure to the relevant disease. as the antibodies do their job and the disease is avoided or healed so the levels of antibodies will reduce. however, as well as antibodies, the body also produces memory cells, from which new antibodies can be produced in vast quantities very quickly. these are stored in the bone marrow and apart from chemotherapy (and so the reason chemo patients must be isolated from poorly people), they cannot be destroyed. neither can they be measured with a blood test.
so why the reason for yearly vaccines?? go on have a guess. yup thats correct $$$$££££ money. yearly booster are a huge profit maker, and fear mongering a good way of ensuring it continues.
need more?
a puppy goes through a remarkable fear free period between about 7 to 14 weeks of age. generally whatever/whomever the puppy should meet then will be accepted and not feared for the rest of its life, also behaviour patterns ie if the dog gets used to accepting new people during this time it will (generally) continue to accept them throughout its life.
hmmmmmmm what age is it recommended a new pup is allowed outside? 2 weeks after the last vaccine. at 14 weeks. so yep, precious little pupper is allowed out for the 1st time when s/he has left the 'safe' period. at 14 weeks novel objects can be terrifying to a pup who has not encountered them before. this can be anything from new people to a carrier bag flapping in the hedge.
so which would you rather risk? a slim chance of a disease, or the much greater chance of an under socialised fear aggressive dog?
those precious few weeks between 7 and 14 weeks can never be replaced. with alot of hard work and behavior shaping, a dog can be taught to accept new things, but it is very difficult.
if you do decide to vaccinate, do yourself and your pets a huge favour, research, research research! dont just rely on your vet, they can only tell you what they have been taught, and alot of their info comes from vaccine makers!
there is a very good google group called truthaboutvaccines (or something similar!). it is very worthwhile reading up on the info there.
i will not recommend that people should or shouldnt vaccinate, because at the end of the day, people should make that decision for themselves. but make that decision based on research


all this is just my opinion though as yet i can provide no certain proof.
one day however i will

 

totaly agree bungies. we take the babes out all the time, but would never tie them up outside or leave them outside. The people acroos the street from us leave them out all the time. Its been like 8 degrees out the last week. and the poor animals are still out freezing......

 

Is there someone you can call about that?

 

The county we live in dosnt have a humane society, and this town is kina a backwoods redneck town....so im not sure who to call....

 

You can always call the police, and express concern. They should be able to direct you. You can also check online to see if your area has tethering laws.

 

just to confirm incase i was confusing.... (it happens often!)
when i said this;

'i often hear that it is safer if the animal is kept indoors etc, but i disagree.
the animal that has been taken out and about since a young age, in places that are used by others gains natural immunity the way mother nature intended.
the animal that has been kept in is denied this, but should the owner bring something in, the animal has little to no immunity.'

i dont mean that one should keep their animals outside all the time, good gods no!
i was refering to people who keep there animals inside PERMANENTLY. such animals cannot hope to gain proper natural immunity.
my dogs go out for walks etc, play in the garden. but are in the house at night and when i am not here.
my cats come and go as they please via a cat flap, but we do a role call twice a day, and if one doesnt show, i go searching till i have found him/her.
(handy hint, teach your cats to come to a whistle, and to mieow when they hear their own name. if one should be trapped, you can follow the mieows until you find them )

 

two words: Herd Immunity

 

would you care to expand a little more please hun?