Behaviour

YES. Thanks to vaccines we now see far fewer cases of the really nasty diseases in pets and thankfully, deaths from Canine Hepatitis, Parvovirus and Distemper are now rare in our region and the same applies for Feline Panleukopenia, Herpes and Calici Virus in cats. Regular vaccinations is the most significant contributing factor in this reduction in disease and deaths.

Disturbingly, we have seen a slight resurgence in Parvovirus cases locally in recent times. This virus is very hardy and can live outside of an animal for many months on lawns, at dog parks and even in homes. It is resistant to most household cleaning products, making it very hard to eradicate from the environment. The virus is particularly dangerous to puppies and is often fatal.

As vets, we’ll always recommend vaccinating as we’ve seen what these awful diseases can do to pets.

We know the vaccinations are necessary, however, the frequency with which they should be given over a pet’s lifetime is less easily known. Regular vaccines are given to maintain your pet’s individual immunity against the serious core diseases, however, once optimal immunity is reached it is not necessary to continue to vaccinate regularly.

The problem is, every pet is unique and without knowing your dog’s immunity status, the only safe thing to do is to continue to revaccinate regularly to ensure your pet is protected.

Titer Testing allows us to check your pet’s immunity and make an informed decision on whether revaccination is necessary for your individual pet.