How Often Should You Vaccinate Your Dog?


  • Linda,
    Although I have no personal gripe with you I have read your posts here and on other lists and feel this time as well as a few others your post was condescending. I personally do not like being spoken down to or seeing anyone with an opinion being spoken down to publicly and as you say you don't either so I would think you would understand why I responded. In your reply you explain what you "really" meant in your post but contradict that in a couple of places so I remain a bit confused by your posts.
    As with other topics you have written about when some disagrees or as you say "calls you out" you have now labeled yourself the victim and misunderstood here. I clearly see there is no point in trying to clarify further what I said, I am comfortable with what I wrote and willing to let it stand on its own.
    AIHA is an awful disease and I'm sorry you lost your dog but as you said it was not vaccine related and although I would not jump to the conclusion the vaccine caused the AIHA I would wonder if I was you, if waiting for the blood results before vaccinating might have given you a better chance at treatment for Sage. Vaccinating a dog in the beginning stages of AIHA as you said Sage was could very well of triggered an immune system reaction which could have cut her life short, but I'm sure you already know this so I'm not telling you anything you haven't considered. Again I would use your dogs case as many others to explain why timing of vaccines as well of frequency plays a huge role in vaccine related issues in our dogs.
    Therese


  • I don't give any shots to my b's except for rabies after the age of 5. If I am concerned re the antibodies levels, I do blood titers. I recommend titers to anyone I place a rescue dog.


  • @renaultf1:

    So Pat…you don't think the BCOA membership as a whole would benefit from the article? Or is it because you have a beef with the health committee that you would like the membership to pay to have access to the article/information?

    Just curious.

    I do think that the entire membership and Basenji owners that are not members would benefit from the article. Their choice if they want to pay for a subscription to TMB. The point that Therese was making is that she would love to write and article for the Bulletin (not a paid ad) about this point… I was agreeing with that and that putting it also in TMB would be a good idea also. Not sure where you think I said that I didn't think that the BCOA membership as a whole would benefit? If that is the way it reads, my apologies, not what was intended, however if the Bulletin doesn't want such an article, then yes, put it in a publication that will print it (and not as an ad). Could have been the part where I said "better yet", however I should have put "Better yet, put it in The Modern Basenji too".

    I have no beef with the Health Committee, per say.... only with the antics of the Co-Chair. IMO the group is way to big and without the appropriate people on the committee. (myself incuded when I was a member as there are much better qualified people to serve on that committee)


  • Hi Therese,

    With all due respect, I can no more control how you or anyone else personalizes and/or filters what I write (or what anyone writes). I can only write and respond through my personal experiences and intentions. If folks want to know what those intentions are vs. assuming they know and then writing as though their assumptions are fact, all they need do is ask. I am more than willing to clarify as I hope any one of us would be without making it or taking it personal.

    As for contradicting myself, again please do let me know how or where I did this as I do not feel I have but am always open to the possibility. Your saying I have done so but then unwilling to show me exactly where does little to help me better communicate and creates an inaccurate implication.

    Going back to my first sentence - I can not control how any one person processes what I write, all I can do is ask folks to please ask, using examples to support their premise, so I can better address the issue. Short of that folks sill continue choose to believe what they believe even if it is not true.

    On another note - Pat - what do you mean by paid advertisement in the Bulletin??? Are you seriously suggesting the BCOA Bulletin charges people for their articles or folks have to pay to have an article included??? What ever gave you that idea? Therese (and anyone else for that matter - I don't beleive you even have to be a member) are more than welcome to send along an article AT NO COST for inclusion in the Bulletin, as has been the way since as long as I can remember.


  • @sinbaje:

    On another note - Pat - what do you mean by paid advertisement in the Bulletin??? *Are you seriously suggesting the BCOA Bulletin charges people for their articles or folks have to pay to have an article included??? *What ever gave you that idea? *Therese (and anyone else for that matter - I don't beleive you even have to be a member) are more than welcome to send along an article AT NO COST for inclusion in the Bulletin, as has been the way since as long as I can remember.

    No, not what I said, I wanted to make it clear that I was speaking of an "article" not a paid ad, period. I made NO suggestion that the Bulletin charge for articles.

    Of course that said, it would have to pass the review committee….to be included


  • @sinbaje:

    It is my opinion that good business practice would dictate in the end a consensus would be needed that all committee members can live with or risk rampant discontent within the committee and beyond.

    Good business practices are not run by such measures. Ultimately, the majority have to make decisions. Simple majority often is needed to get ANYTHING done. Committee members have to accept they win some, they lose some, pull up your big girl panties and move on. Effective business cannot be run trying to please all the board members.

    @renaultf1:

    Or is it because you have a beef with the health committee that you would like the membership to pay to have access to the article/information?Just curious.

    Snark.

    @tanza:

    If that is the way it reads, my apologies, not what was intended

    You have, on occasions, taken shots at me, and me at you, so if anyone should be reading crappola into your posts, it would be me. So let me assure you, your post didn't display anything to apologize for.

    @Therese:

    although I would not jump to the conclusion the vaccine caused the AIHA I would wonder if I was you, if waiting for the blood results before vaccinating might have given you a better chance at treatment for Sage. Vaccinating a dog in the beginning stages of AIHA as you said Sage was could very well of triggered an immune system reactionTherese

    If you had addressed that cruel, uncalled for comment to me, I'd have been barred from this forum before the virtual ink dried. The test showed
    :::: The lab work was mostly unremarkable though her hemotocrit was slightly low - we just thought she was dehydrated that particular morning due to being fasted.:::::
    Your post seems to indicate… no it SAYS it, had she waited her dog might be alive. Uncalled for callous comment. SLIGHTLY LOW, fasting, absolutely NOTHING but crystal ball to indicate a problem. Had she NOT vaccinated, it might not have, indeed progressed, so the dog would STILL have seemed okay, gotten the vaccine. Shaking my head. I don't know what the history is, but placing blame in any way on an owner who responded in a normal way is surely to goodness uncalled for at least. Perhaps Linda has a much thicker skin than me, but first I'd have cried, and then I'd have blasted you in a way that would have ended my participation here. (And please don't try spinning it that you were suggesting everyone should wait til full blood panel of all possible types before vaccinating... which is what, at that stage, it would have taken to indicate any real problem, if even that!)


  • @tanza:

    I do think that the entire membership and Basenji owners that are not members would benefit from the article. Their choice if they want to pay for a subscription to TMB. The point that Therese was making is that she would love to write and article for the Bulletin (not a paid ad) about this point… I was agreeing with that and that putting it also in TMB would be a good idea also. Not sure where you think I said that I didn't think that the BCOA membership as a whole would benefit? If that is the way it reads, my apologies, not what was intended, however if the Bulletin doesn't want such an article, then yes, put it in a publication that will print it (and not as an ad). Could have been the part where I said "better yet", however I should have put "Better yet, put it in The Modern Basenji too".

    I have no beef with the Health Committee, per say…. only with the antics of the Co-Chair. IMO the group is way to big and without the appropriate people on the committee. (myself incuded when I was a member as there are much better qualified people to serve on that committee)

    Thanks Pat for the clarification…yes, the bold was why I took your post the way I did.


  • @DebraDownSouth:

    Snark.
    You have, on occasions, taken shots at me, and me at you, so if anyone should be reading crappola into your posts, it would be me. So let me assure you, your post didn't display anything to apologize for.

    Debra…do me a favor...and DON'T speak on my behalf or pretend for one minute that you know my intent - you DON'T. I'm quite capable of responding. If you took my comment as a snark, so be it. Quite frankly I DID take Pat's post as saying to put the article in TMB instead of the Bulletin and since I am a member of the BCOA, I wanted to know why. Pat has since clarified what she meant, I've since clarified why I took it the way I did - two folks involved in the conversation - explaining their side, problem solved. And your involvement has helped that how?


  • @sinbaje:

    (I do yearly lab work on all my kids)

    Linda, what type of yearly lab work do you have done?


  • Debra,
    If you read my comment as cruel it was not intended to be and I'm clarifying that. Linda did not give clear detail but I stand by the fact that I am the cause of my Ali's red blood cell aplasia in the sense I allowed the vet to restart her vaccine protocol because he was not comfortable relying on the breeders vaccine records. I should have stood my ground and used caution. Linda S stated in her posts that she is educated in vaccine reactions and takes the time to do blood work annually, although I put no blame on Linda for vaccinating her dog anymore than I do Jo for using annual vaccines on her dog that is now facing an issue I do think questioning these types of decisions in hind sight can only prove to help the dogs in the future.
    So to clarify, I do not believe Sage would have been saved by not waiting for labs, just that it may have helped or rather the vaccine given in this case as in others may have "hurt". Just wanted to clarify as I would never intentionally be cruel about someone losing their dog. It breaks my heart we don't get a second chance on dogs like Sage or my girl Ali to do things differently but we certainly can help dogs in the future with what we learned in the past and that was my point.
    Therese


  • @renaultf1:

    Debra…do me a favor...and DON'T speak on my behalf or pretend for one minute that you know my intent - you DON'T. I'm quite capable of responding. If you took my comment as a snark, so be it. Quite frankly I DID take Pat's post as saying to put the article in TMB instead of the Bulletin and since I am a member of the BCOA, I wanted to know why. Pat has since clarified what she meant, I've since clarified why I took it the way I did - two folks involved in the conversation - explaining their side, problem solved. And your involvement has helped that how?

    You post on public board, you get public response. You post a snark, inferring her comment was some nefarious slight to BCOA when it was simply addressing "free" means to publishing info, when it was not necessary to bring personal issues into it, when it really would have opened the article up to many who may not be part of BCOA (I'd have to see membership/subscriber numbers to know), was, IMHO, a snark. If you don't want public response, if you want private conversations, I do trust you know how to use email, no?
    Helped? At least it let her know at least one person didn't think she owed anyone an apology for someone putting their own agenda/spin on her response.


  • @DebraDownSouth:

    You post on public board, you get public response. You post a snark, inferring her comment was some nefarious slight to BCOA when it was simply addressing "free" means to publishing info, when it was not necessary to bring personal issues into it, when it really would have opened the article up to many who may not be part of BCOA (I'd have to see membership/subscriber numbers to know), was, IMHO, a snark. If you don't want public response, if you want private conversations, I do trust you know how to use email, no? In fact, much of your personal (the real word is attack but let's diffuse and call them "comments") comments to Linda, like the below, would surely have been better as a PRIVATE conversation. I have no issues with strong opinions about THINGS, but when the focus is a personal nature, it doesn't belong on a forum. And when you do, don't cry at responses.

    Helped? At least it let her know at least one person didn't think she owed anyone an apology for someone putting their own agenda/spin on her response.

    Can you read? Did you see the part that was highlighted in my response to Pat - after her apology. So you don't think that the one word "too" clarified what she meant? It did to me. Clear enough? Post a few more paragraphs…Again you have NO IDEA about my intent. I've explained (to Pat - I owe you no explanation), if you can't understand it, well no amount of explanation will get it across to you. I'm done.


  • OK, lets go back to our regularly scheduled programing!


  • Debra, Linda and all in this thread. I would like to stop the bickering, back and forth, she said, she meant stuff. To me the important part of this thread is the post with the links.
    I won't try to clarify further or defend anything further that I personally posted, people may not read things the way I intended or I may not have written things the way I wanted them read but enough is enough for me. I am comfortable with what I wrote and am willing to take any lumps that come for it on a public forum.
    I again thank Kris for posting the link and this weekend will post it to my website in a new page.
    I love that people are so passionate about their dogs, any breed of dog and look forward to many more passionate discussions in years to come as we all work to improve their lives in any way we can.
    Therese


  • I sincerely hope we can go back to debating issues, not people. That is where learning and exchanging ideas actually occur.


  • Cat question - our 16 year old girl is 'up' for her shots. She is now an indoor cat and I can't see her exposed to any harmful things. In the past, taking her to the vet (8 minute ride there) and getting the shots has been rotten for her - MAJOR stress and being ill (throwing up). So, would you still vaccinate if she was your cat?


  • Another related question (or more accurately..questions). Does anybody here run titers regularly…do you do it annually...how much more expensive is it than vaccines? Have you been able to convince your boarding facility to accept them in place of vaccine records?


  • Fran, the AAHA has guidelines on felines, but most of my cat friends get rabies because of the law and nothing else… taking them in for first appt of day to avoid issues, in their own carriers etc.
    Here is the cat one from American Association of Feline Practitioners: http://www.catvets.com/uploads/HTML/VaccineSummary.html

    Andrea, when I first began NOT doing yearly, I paid more each year for titers than I would have for shots. But as the evidence grew, I generally do them once after 3 yrs. Every one, even with autoimmune problem Sayblee, showed no need to revaccinate, but I still did the 3 yr just in case. Now, with Cara, I just had her 1 yr done and will most likely do a titre in 2 or 3 yrs. Unless it isn't good, that will be it for her, just vaccines every 3 yrs. Initially I had other vets who really guilted me about not doing yearly shots and how the LEAST I could do was titers.

    On boarding, my own vet requires ONLY rabies and kennel cough so it has never been a problem. I keep hearing about people having vets claim they have to do the others, but call around. Of course, I have to admit that I have only boarded a few times in the last 15 yrs as I generally use a pet sitter.


  • Quercus.
    I only do titers on my b's now. Have done for years. It is more expensive, at least in my area, than the shots. But I am willing to take that expense so my b's don't take a shot they don't need. FYI, I only do the titers every 3 yrs or so, just when the rabies is due.
    I have not had any need to give shots since I have started titering thei blood.

    Fran, I woudn't give my senior cat any more shots.


  • I titer my dogs 3 years after their initial shots and then yearly thereafter. If I'm bringing a puppy into the house, I usually get them re-vaccinated just to be on the safe side if it's after the 3 year period.

    Titers are more expensive here than the shots but I feel it's better than over-vaccinating. We lost our first vizsla to cancer at 6 years old and while she was getting chemo, one of the oncologists mentioned that they thought over vaccinating could be a cause in the uprise in cancer cases, especially in younger dogs. It was after that I started titering.

    I don't know about cats, but my eldest dog is soon to be 11 and aside from his rabies shots, I won't be having him vaccinated anymore.

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