Vaccination updates 10-10-09
I recently had the distinct pleasure to moderate Dr. Richard Ford DVM, ACVIM, DACVPM (hon) and current chair of the AAHA Vaccine Guidelines Task Force, when he presented a full day of vaccination updates at the Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Association (WVMA) annual conference in October ‘09.
Our vaccine recommendations have always been based on the American Animal Hospital Associations (AAHA) Vaccine Guidelines Task force as well as the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) guidelines. Dr. Ford’s talk was very well received by the veterinary community as his expertise is world renowned and he fully supports the work of these two incredible organizations.
The following is a brief overview of his comments and we will make updates in vaccination protocols accordingly.
Canine Influenza H3N8
1) Because the currently available vaccine takes 2 doses and 3 to 4 weeks to have an effect and doesn’t prevent disease, he is not advising it for the general public’s dogs where there has not been an outbreak. Extended stay shelters, commercial kennels, and private kennels in reported areas would be exceptions.
Lyme vaccination
1) Lyme vaccination should always follow an in house test for Lyme disease (Snap 4DX -which also tests for heartworm, Anaplsamosis & Ehrlicha the most common tick carried diseases seen). If the test is positive (which DOES confirm infection, but not necessarily disease) treatment with doxycycline should should be performed to attempt to clear infection before re-vaccination.
2) We will be holding off on the new Lyme vaccine because it is not recombinant (therefore may not be as safe) and it has not been demonstrated as more effective than our current vaccine which has an excellent safety record.
For complete discussion of tick related disease updates presented at this conference by Dr. Ford & Dr. Rich Alleman please see Tick-carried Disease update.
Feline Leukemia testing & vaccination
1) Feline Leukemia testing (which includes FIV and now heartworm testing ) should be done each year as part of general wellness testing to determine if any one of these three diseases is present and also in any cat presented with any illness.
2) Outdoor cats should be vaccinated yearly for Leukemia using the non-adjuvanted vaccine as per the AAFP guidelines
3) All kittens should be tested negative then vaccinated until they are until they are 1.5 years old and then vaccination can be discontinued if their lifestyle is 100% indoors.
3) All other feline vaccines should be given every 3 years per AAFP guidelines (which we have followed since their inception).
Bordetella
1) Should be continued on an annual basis (every 6 moths OK too) for all pets whose lifestyle is social enough that they are exposed to other dogs frequently. The intranasal form is preferred because of better local immunity.
2) Co-infection should be considered if Canine influenza H3N8 gets to the state. His thoughts are that we may have less severe disease if dogs are well protected for Bordetella.
“New” Parvo virus strains
1) The new strains CP 2 & 3 are still well protected by existing vaccines.
2) The reported failures in vaccination are largely due to improper timing and blocking by maternal antibody.
Highly antigenic vaccines (Lepto & Perio)
1) Try to give by themselves in pets less than 12 lbs and less than 12 weeks old.
2) New Leptospirosis is on the way that he hopes is more effective and less reactive.
General
1) Maternal antibody discussion. Every 3 weeks starting at 8 weeks is most common with the most important vaccine being given at 15 to 16 weeks.
Our current schedule of vaccination covers this.
2) There are no known breed specific vaccine failures (as reported in Rottweilers & Dobermans) but there are some breed specific sensitivities (Dachshunds, Pugs, Boxers & German Shepherds) that are not yet well understood.
3) Vaccination visits should be spaced a minimum of 2 weeks between.
4) Antibody tests are only useful in really valuable puppies to prove that vaccination has been effective (2 to 4 weeks after 15 to 16 week vaccination) or in a known case of immune mediated reaction (e.g. cock er spaniel that had IMHA or another breed other immune mediated disease (GME).
5) Task force will be reconvening soon to discuss the recent proliferation of new diseases & vaccines to attempt to prevent them (last convened in 2008).
Stay tuned in this ever changing area!
Dr. Ken Lambrecht
Medical Director WFPC
