Is there anyone out there that can give thier opinion right now? Annual Shots.

[Gypsy Moon's mama]

I think you'll find that most of the folks who end up in those situations either didn't titer (as well as didn't vaccinate), or the variation on the sickness wasn't one covered by the vaccine anyway....

I DO know the folks you're talking about, they don't even do the puppy shots and insist the dog will gain immunity from being exposed to other dogs in general. I hate those, cause it gives those of us who've educated and trying to do a limited vaccine regimen a really bad name.

I'm not against limited vaccination...I just can't understand people who do nothing. THEN when their animal is sick...they spend tons of money trying to save them. That's all.

 

[ruthcatrin]

I'm not against limited vaccination...I just can't understand people who do nothing. THEN when their animal is sick...they spend tons of money trying to save them. That's all.

There's a bunch of them on the Raw feeding group I'm part of. And while I totally agree that over vaccinating is BAD, and that a healthy dog is alot less likely to get sick in the first place, I don't agree with totally not doing ANY vaccinating at all. Do the puppy shots, at least till a titer comes back good, then titer from there to keep an eye on the dogs immunity.

 

[Gypsy Moon's mama]

ruthcatrin,
you are right...there are alot times that mutated strains of a disease show up and the vaccinations mean nothing. They do not change them like we do our human flu vaccine. Just think about how often our flu vaccine is not effective for the current illness. All we can do is make an educated choice and like anglebears said "do your homework".

 

[raechiemay]

I'm trying to figure out why the titer costs you so much! The last time I did a scan of labs to look at who did what (I by NO MEANS looked at all of them) most charge between $30-$60 for the distemper/parvo titer, my vet charges $90 to cover the cost of the titer, tech fee (includes bloodwork fee), and shipping to the lab. If its part of a vet visit then the tech fee is considered to be part of the exam fee.

3yrs is WAY better than yearly. If money's an issue, then 3yrs isn't the end of the world, but I really really recommend titering if at all possible.

Thanks Ruth! My vet is in a high income area so of course their prices reflect. Residents in this city & the city right next to it have $500k+ homes & I swear the women in those cities have nothing better to do than play tennis & spend money...They quoted me on the upward side of $800-900 to spay Duchess at 18 months. I trust my vet & have a very hard time trying to convince myself to change, but I just cannot simply afford that much to have D spayed when I've been quoted half that elsewhere. And the thought of low cost spay/neuter clinics makes me cringe. While good in theory, I just worry about the "assembly line" process they have. Most recently my cousin had her kitten neutered & declawed & they sent him home still half drunk. Normal procedure for that at my vet would've required a minimum 2-3 night stay. But alas, this is not a spay/neuter topic so I apologize for my straying away from the OT. Sorry guys.

 

[ruthcatrin]

not a fan of low cost spay/neuter either, though its better than none such by far, but yah, especially for a spay I'd like to see an overnight when possible, to keep an eye on the dog.

ruthcatrin,
you are right...there are alot times that mutated strains of a disease show up and the vaccinations mean nothing. They do not change them like we do our human flu vaccine. Just think about how often our flu vaccine is not effective for the current illness. All we can do is make an educated choice and like anglebears said "do your homework".

Pretty much. Now I do keep an eye out for new vaccine variations, and if someone came out with one that covered a new strain of something I'd seriously consider having the dogs re-vaccinated, that'd be worth it to me.

 

[fila4me]

And the thought of low cost spay/neuter clinics makes me cringe. While good in theory, I just worry about the "assembly line" process they have. Most recently my cousin had her kitten neutered & declawed & they sent him home still half drunk. Normal procedure for that at my vet would've required a minimum 2-3 night stay. But alas, this is not a spay/neuter topic so I apologize for my straying away from the OT. Sorry guys.

as the owner of Filas,I have never had one that stayed overnight after a spay/neuter or any other procedure(that was not life threatening).Not a safe situation for the staff that would have the responsibility of taking care of them.I have to get them before they are fully awake and this from my regular vet.

 

[Rugers-Kris]

Thanks, Everyone!!! I do love this forum! I opted to have the Rabie (State Law), Fecal exam and the blood test for heartworms. After that I opted for the Titer for the others. I will know soon about the titer and will go from there but his fecal and blood test came back negative..YAY!! And the vet says that he is perfect. I am very happy. I appreciate everyone jumping to offer the advice. I was really stressing about it and just didn't take the opportunity to ask for opinions in time. However, because I felt so uncomfortable with just shooting him up....I went with the titer. It was nice to come back and find that those that I respect the most in the forum agreed with my decision. Northern, Thanks A LOT now that damn song is stuck in my head.

Ruth, I don't know if I ever told you but I did end up ordering a muzzle through Dean and Tyler and I am THRILLED with it and Ruger doesn't mind it a bit! I have put it on him several times prior to the appointment and have taught him that when I put it on, he must sit still......Vet appointment went much better and the dumb ass that had Ruger riled up the last go was told by the vet to stay completely in the back until we left. Ruger still wasn't thrilled but it wasn't stressful this go at it.

 

[Rugers-Kris]

By the way...It WAS much more expensive for the titer.....But I would rather pay more and know than to take the risk if it isn't needed.

 

[ruthcatrin]

as the owner of Filas,I have never had one that stayed overnight after a spay/neuter or any other procedure(that was not life threatening).Not a safe situation for the staff that would have the responsibility of taking care of them.I have to get them before they are fully awake and this from my regular vet.

Yah, Fila's, and other similer tempered dogs, are one of the few exceptions to most rules lol

Thanks, Everyone!!! I do love this forum! I opted to have the Rabie (State Law), Fecal exam and the blood test for heartworms. After that I opted for the Titer for the others. I will know soon about the titer and will go from there but his fecal and blood test came back negative..YAY!! And the vet says that he is perfect. I am very happy. I appreciate everyone jumping to offer the advice. I was really stressing about it and just didn't take the opportunity to ask for opinions in time. However, because I felt so uncomfortable with just shooting him up....I went with the titer. It was nice to come back and find that those that I respect the most in the forum agreed with my decision. Northern, Thanks A LOT now that damn song is stuck in my head.

Ruth, I don't know if I ever told you but I did end up ordering a muzzle through Dean and Tyler and I am THRILLED with it and Ruger doesn't mind it a bit! I have put it on him several times prior to the appointment and have taught him that when I put it on, he must sit still......Vet appointment went much better and the dumb ass that had Ruger riled up the last go was told by the vet to stay completely in the back until we left. Ruger still wasn't thrilled but it wasn't stressful this go at it.

Glad that the muzzle is working! And that the vet helped keep the idiot away!

 

[NYDDB]

Something else I wanted to add: Please, when scheduling the rabies vaccine, ask your vet for the thimerisol-free (t-free) rabies shot. It's from Imrab. The Benefits of IMRAB | IMRABs leading rabies vaccine

Thimerosal In Rabies Vaccines Dogs Naturally Magazine

I had to push my vet for this (after the eye-roll, he finally said yes, he would order a single dose for Mateo). It's worth it-- no way am I shooting mercury into my dog's body when it's not necessary.

 

[tjohnson722]

Hi Angel bears...the main problem is that Distemper and Parvo are UGLY. By the time you know that a dog has Parvo or Distemper the damage is already done...Most dogs that have survived Distemper also are prone toOld dog Encephalitis and Hard Pad's Disease...kind of like when we humans get chickenpox then shingles when we are old...Parvo is not something to play with either...Titers are ok...I suppose that it shows that an animal has built an immunity to a disease...BUT...I err on the side of caution and vaccinate per my vet's recommendations. Everyone is certainly allowed their own opinion...that's what makes our country great.

This is so true. Parvo killed one of my pit bulls about 7 years ago. After 250.00 in vet visits giving him electrolytes every 2 hours for 7 days, among other things, he died on my lap. He was 13 months old and the best dog I've ever owned.

My aunt owned a kennel she won't allow dogs unless it has the kennel cough vaccine.

The rest I don't know but I do know vaccines may have saved my life here recently. I didn't have to have them, but I did. Thank god!

Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[angelbears]

This is so true. Parvo killed one of my pit bulls about 7 years ago. After 250.00 in vet visits giving him electrolytes every 2 hours for 7 days, among other things, he died on my lap. He was 13 months old and the best dog I've ever owned.

My aunt owned a kennel she won't allow dogs unless it has the kennel cough vaccine.

The rest I don't know but I do know vaccines may have saved my life here recently. I didn't have to have them, but I did. Thank god!

Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 4 Beta

So sorry to hear about having to go through that with your pup. Was he ever vaccinated?

 

[angelbears]

Off the top of your heads, does anyone know how long after a vaccination, the dog will have immunity? Immediately, 24hours, days?

 

[tjohnson722]

My thing is, do you 200% know what the dog next door or down the road is healthy, being properly vaccinated, etc., I could go on. I see the worst of the worst every day of my life. One thing I've learned is people lie or just don't care.

Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[ruthcatrin]

Off the top of your heads, does anyone know how long after a vaccination, the dog will have immunity? Immediately, 24hours, days?

About two weeks is the average I find stated everywhere, I can't find where anyone's actually done any studies on it though.

My thing is, do you 200% know what the dog next door or down the road is healthy, being properly vaccinated, etc., I could go on. I see the worst of the worst every day of my life. One thing I've learned is people lie or just don't care.

Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 4 Beta

Yah, thats why I titer, to be sure they maintain their immunity. If they ever fail a titer I'll revaccinate, but I don't expect it to happen any time soon....

 

[voidecho]

I know humans and dogs aren't the same and neither are the diseases that attack each, but the fact that people don't get yearly boosters leads me to believe that dogs probably don't need them either.

 

[marke]

This is so true. Parvo killed one of my pit bulls about 7 years ago. After 250.00 in vet visits giving him electrolytes every 2 hours for 7 days, among other things, he died on my lap. He was 13 months old and the best dog I've ever owned.

some breeds of dogs are notoriously susceptible to parvo ..... from my experience pitbulls and rottweilers are two breeds i know of ...... i believe you'll find those breeds have an unusually high number of non-responders . i've seen a pretty large number of ddb going back to a particular gene pool and have never seen one with parvo .......

 

[fila4me]

Yah, Fila's, and other similer tempered dogs, are one of the few exceptions to most rules lol

hahaha!Filas seem to be the exceptions to lots of rules!!

 

[Duetsche_Doggen]

Thanks Ruth! My vet is in a high income area so of course their prices reflect. Residents in this city & the city right next to it have $500k+ homes & I swear the women in those cities have nothing better to do than play tennis & spend money...They quoted me on the upward side of $800-900 to spay Duchess at 18 months. I trust my vet & have a very hard time trying to convince myself to change, but I just cannot simply afford that much to have D spayed when I've been quoted half that elsewhere. And the thought of low cost spay/neuter clinics makes me cringe. While good in theory, I just worry about the "assembly line" process they have. Most recently my cousin had her kitten neutered & declawed & they sent him home still half drunk. Normal procedure for that at my vet would've required a minimum 2-3 night stay. But alas, this is not a spay/neuter topic so I apologize for my straying away from the OT. Sorry guys.

LOL sounds boring.

When I looked into getting Thor the chop, I was quoted the same. WTF??? Yet a equine vet could do a horse for a fraction of the cost. I think $200 was what she told me for horse castration??? I've temped with the S&N clinics but procrastinated plus the worries of surgery with such a large dog.

OT though, last time I checked into Titers it was pretty pricey. This was about a year or so ago I checked and I was quoted around $150. I'm not sure what that entailed though. Rugers Kris I'm glad things went well for you. I must have missed it but when did Ruger decide he wanted to be a Fila.

 

[Robtouw]

At one year, I get the 3yr rabies vac and annual heartworm ck at the same time. Later I schedule boosters for distemper/parvo/bordatella. I have three bordatellas each year due to size. I do not do routine bloodwork unless necessary because I have found that no matter what you do your vet always has a list of more and more "necessary" items. I have a shot schedule that hangs on our board for all of my critters since our list is long. If I did every test they want, I'd be broke in no time!