Vaccine Information with Chart Schedules Part 2

[Daveyo]

Jan 27th 2008


Common Questions Regarding Vaccines/Vaccination

Questions today are being asked more now than in the past since most vaccine experts, and many dog owners, believe that certain vaccines are given too often and some are unnecessary. Answers to the above questions are complex and depend on the needs of a particular animal as well as the expectations of the owner and veterinarian. [1-5].

At What Age and Which Vaccines to Use?

Unfortunately, simple and universally agreed on answers are not available. Most experts agree that puppy vaccination programs should begin at 6 to 9 weeks of age; the first puppy vaccination should begin prior to 6 weeks of age only in special situations, e.g., humane shelters. Vaccination at less than 6 weeks of age is often not effective due to interference of vaccinal immunity by passively acquired antibodies and, rarely (e.g. <2 weeks of age), inability of a pup's immune system to respond effectively to the vaccine. Ideally, pups should be kept in a clean environment prior to vaccination and have no, or minimal, contact with dogs other than the dam and littermates. The first and second doses of vaccine in a puppy series optimally includes only the CPV-2 and CDV components. Those are the most important vaccines for a pup less than 12 weeks of age because canine parvovirus and canine distemper are the two most serious infectious diseases of dogs.

CPV-2 is now the most important vaccine in the USA since pups are most likely to encounter this virus because of its high prevalence and environmental stability. When CDV is a major threat to young pups, as in known distemper-infected kennels or humane shelters, the most effective product is the combined measles virus (MV)-CDV vaccine. This product can be used in pups as young as 4 weeks of age when necessary. When MV-CDV is used, revaccination should be done with a CDV product that does not contain MV. After 9 weeks of age, the vaccine regimen should include a rabies vaccine (12 weeks or older) and multi-component vaccines (CPV-2, CDV and CAV). All current commercial products also contain CPI virus, however, CPI is not needed in the parenteral vaccine since it is often given and is more effective when given intranasally in combination with B. bronchiseptica. Intranasal products are available which contain CAV-2 in addition to B. bronchiseptica and CPI. Use of the three-way intranasal product would eliminate the need to give CPI and CAV-2 parenterally.

Leptospira bacterins, if needed, should ideally be given at 9 weeks of age or older. Leptospira bacterins require two doses of vaccine which should be given at intervals of 2 to 4 weeks between doses. Multiple doses of modified live viral vaccines are generally required only in pups less than 12 weeks of age because after this age passively acquired antibodies from the dam have usually declined below levels which prevent successful immunization. When MLV vaccines are given to pups that have lost their passively acquired antibody (~12 weeks of age), a single dose of vaccine can immunize. Multiple doses are required for primary vaccination with certain killed vaccines (e.g. Leptospira spp., Lyme disease) but single doses are sufficient when revaccinating at a later time, usually at 1 year. Due to improvements in multi-component core vaccines, especially the CPV-2 component, and the lower antibody titers of dogs in vaccinated populations it is no longer necessary to administer vaccines through the age of 18 to 20 weeks. Previous recommendations for the last dose of vaccine at 18 or 20 weeks were made in the 1980's and early '90's because CPV-2 vaccines failed to immunize a high percentage of pups even when passively acquired antibody titers were well below the level of antibody that provided protection from infection with virulent virus. [3,6]

Also at that time, a large proportion of dogs had antibodies recently engendered by virulent virus, rather than vaccines. The "window of vulnerability" ("critical period" - see Canine Parvovirus, U. Truyen, In: Recent Advances in Canine Infectious Diseases, L.E. Carmichael (Ed.), IVIS, Ithaca, NY - Doc. No. A0106.0100), was as long as several months when certain of the older CPV-2 vaccines were used! However, with the improved CPV-2 vaccines now available from the major vaccine manufacturers, the "window of vulnerability" has been reduced to 2 weeks, or less. It is, therefore, not necessary to vaccinate pups beyond 12 to 14 weeks of age. The other core vaccine components also will immunize a majority of dogs when the last dose is given at 12 to 14 weeks of age. [6-8].


How Often to Vaccinate?

Repeated vaccinations with multi-component vaccines need not be repeated at intervals more often than every 2 to 4 weeks in a puppy program. Two to three doses of vaccine should be adequate to immunize when vaccination is started at 6 to 9 weeks. The most important aspect of a puppy vaccination program is to make certain that the last dose of vaccine in the series is given when the animal is at least 12 to 14 weeks of age. However, as mentioned above, pups often receive 4 to 6 doses of the same multi-component vaccine during the first 3 - 4 months of life. The higher number of doses may be justified for animals in humane shelters, commercial kennels, or other areas where animals are at high risk. However, pet dogs in a single or multi-dog household are at low risk of exposure to most diseases. Such animals would not need to be revaccinated every 2 weeks and they should never be vaccinated every week, as practiced in the USA by some breeders and veterinarians.

Furthermore, if a dog is at high risk of exposure to an important disease like CPV-2, a monovalent CPV-2 vaccine is recommended, not a multi-component product . The risk of adverse reactions has been greater with multi-component vaccines.

Expected Immunization Success:

Since passively acquired antibody declines below the level where it can interfere with the current core vaccines by 12 to 14 weeks of age, modified live CPV-2, CDV and CAV vaccines given at this age will immunize a very high percentage of pups (>90%) and the immunity from that single dose of vaccine will last for several years. Our research on duration of immunity for the CPV-2, CDV and CAV vaccines has demonstrated a minimum duration of immunity of 7 years; the maximum duration of immunity may be for the life of most (>80%) vaccinated animals. Many killed rabies vaccines have a minimum duration of immunity of 3 years.

However, a small percentage of pups (<5%) fail to develop immunity to one or more of the core components and a much higher percentage of pups (>25%) fail to develop immunity to certain of the non-core vaccines for a variety of reasons. Reasons which have been given include: The presence of passively acquired antibody at time of last vaccination; delay in maturation of the immune system; poor vaccinal immunogenicity; vaccine not given often enough; genetic inability to respond to certain vaccine antigens; immunosuppression; too many components in a multi-component vaccine; or ineffective lots of vaccine. [9, 10].
To ensure that all pups become immune, one dose of rabies vaccine is given at 12 weeks of age or older, followed by a second dose 1 year later, or at 1 year of age. Revaccination is then done at 3 year intervals. Similarly the CPV-2, CDV and CAV vaccine could be given at 1 year and then every 3 to 5 years without concern about loss of immunity.

There is no evidence, or reason, to believe that revaccination with the core vaccines more often than recommended above would provide more effective protection from the important diseases since the minimum duration of immunity from the core vaccines is at least 3 years. States in the USA which require annual revaccination for rabies should remove those requirements because annual revaccinations are unnecessary. Vaccinating the same animal less often also would reduce the risk of adverse reactions. In areas where there is a high risk of rabies, programs must be developed to immunize those dogs that have never been vaccinated or have not been vaccinated within the past 3 or more years.

Unvaccinated dogs pose the greatest threat for the transmission of rabies virus, not dogs which have been previously vaccinated or, especially, those vaccinated within the past 3 years. In our studies, pups vaccinated annually with modified live CPV-2, CDV and CAV vaccines received no added benefit from annual revaccination throughout a period of 7 years when compared to dogs that were vaccinated as pups then challenged with virulent virus at 7 years of age. Both groups of dogs were protected from challenge infection with CPV-2, CDV and/or CAV. Therefore, for those vaccines that provide immunity for 3 or more years, I believe that annual revaccination is contraindicated - the increased risk of adverse reactions from revaccination provides no benefit.

In contrast, use of those products which provide only a short duration of immunity (~1 year) requires annual, or even more frequent, vaccinations - but only with products that contain vaccine components that are needed in a particular region (e.g. Leptospira or Lyme disease bacterins), not with multi-component products containing unnecessary vaccines.

"Non-Core" Vaccines: Which are Needed and When?

Which "non-core" vaccines are really needed?

This question is difficult to answer and depends on the animal and its environment.

Leptospira bacterins - The most important "non-core" vaccine is for leptospirosis since this infection can cause mild to severe illness and it is a zoonosis. The question could be asked why Leptospira bacterins are not included as "core" vaccines? The principal reason concerns vaccine efficacy - a high percentage of vaccinated dogs do not develop protective immunity, or they develop immunity for only a short duration of time.

Until recently, bacterins contained only two serovars (L. canicola and L. icterohaemorrhagiae) and cross protection between leptospiral serovars does not occur. Furthermore, the Leptospira sp bacterins are among the more reactogenic components in multi-component vaccines. Clinically, immediate and/or chronic immune-mediated reactions have been observed and, experimentally, multiple types of immune mediated hypersensitivities have been induced with leptospiral antigens.

Moreover, Leptospira bacterins do not prevent infection or shedding of the organisms in the urine, even when they reduce or eliminate the clinical signs of disease. Thus, the public health threat from organisms being shed in the environment persists. Finally, Leptospira bacterins are not considered "core vaccines" because leptospirosis is rare in many geographic regions of the USA and few or no clinical cases have occurred for many years. Very recently, new vaccines have been licensed in the USA that contain L. grippotyphosa and L. pomona.

The new vaccines should provide broader immunity and, hopefully, will prevent disease caused by those serovars. However, the new vaccine containing the four serovars requires evaluation in a large number of dogs before it is known whether it will reduce the incidence of canine leptospirosis in endemic areas and if adverse reactions are worse than those caused by current products which contain only 2 serovars.


According to our recent survey on vaccination programs, approximately 30% of veterinary practices do not vaccinate for leptospirosis. The responding practitioners either didn't believe that leptospirosis was a significant problem in their area or the vaccine containing L. canicola and L. icterohaemorrhagiae serovars failed to provide protection. Also, there were concerns about adverse reactions when the current products were used. Approximately 50% of the veterinarians completing the survey must have felt leptospirosis was a significant problem since they vaccinated >75% of the dogs with the products containing L. canicola+icterohemorrhagiae.

According to our survey Leptospira bacterins were used in more dogs than any of the other "non-core" vaccines except CPI.
 
Canine parainfluenza and B. bronchiseptica - CPI is included as a component of all current parenteral vaccines containing CDV, CPV-2 and CAV; therefore, it is given to every dog that receives the core vaccine. Approximately 80% of practices surveyed vaccinated less than 50% of dogs with B. bronchiseptica.

The product used most often for kennel cough was an intranasal vaccine that contained both B. bronchiseptica and CPI.

However please be made aware recently there has been cases of dogs having adverse reactions to nasal vaccine. Many VETS are turning back to the injectible form.

Many non-vaccinated dogs never develop "kennel cough" or they develop mild, self-limiting disease; however, other dogs, both vaccinated and non-vaccinated, developed severe, protracted kennel cough requiring treatment. Efficacy of the present kennel cough vaccines is controversial

(see: Canine Respiratory Bordetellosis, D. Keil and B. Fenwick, In: Recent Advances in Canine Infectious Diseases, L.E. Carmichael (Ed.), IVIS, Ithaca, NY - Doc. No. A0104.0100) and duration of immunity, if present, would be less than 1 year.

Ventilation and hygiene are important in environments where kennel cough is prevalent. In certain kennels, improvement in ventilation has eliminated or reduced the need for kennel cough vaccines. Also, in some environments vaccination at intervals as frequent as every 3 to 6 months failed to significantly reduce respiratory disease.

Coronavirus vaccines - Although approximately 50% of practices routinely use coronavirus vaccine, most vaccine experts agree that this vaccine is not needed. Some experts consider CCV vaccines useless. Clinical disease rarely occurs with CCV infection and when disease does occur it is usually mild, self-limiting and most commonly seen in pups less than 8 weeks of age - an age which is earlier than vaccine would provide benefit.

Based on our observations that the preponderance of clinical cases caused by CCV occur in young pups, any "protection" derived from vaccination of pups or from natural infection would, in the practical sense, last a lifetime. Furthermore, CCV alone has not been shown to experimentally cause significant disease in susceptible dogs.

The demonstration that CCV can enhance the severity of disease caused by CPV-2, does not suggest a need for CCV vaccine since dogs vaccinated with CPV-2 vaccine only, are completely protected when co-infected with a combination of CCV and CPV-2. [6] CCV vaccine alone provided no protection for dogs challenged with a combination of CCV and CPV-2.

Lyme Disease Vaccine - This vaccine should be used only in areas where Lyme disease is known to occur, and where it may pose a serious threat to the health of the dog. Even in areas where Lyme disease has been shown to be endemic, and where infection with Borrelia burgdorferi is common, clinical illness is rare. When seen, it is often mild and readily treated with antibiotics. In certain highly endemic areas where infection of the natural vectors (mice and deer) is almost 100%, disease in dogs may be more common, and sometimes severe, but cases are responsive to antibiotic treatment.

After the release of the first human Lyme disease vaccine, a segment of the human population with a particular human leukocyte antigen type, determined by genetics, was found at increased risk to developing chronic arthritis after vaccination with the Lyme vaccine. This finding should signal caution in the over use of canine Lyme vaccine since a similar phenomenon may occur in dogs.

Lyme disease vaccine, if used, should be given only to dogs that are truly at very high risk of infection/disease.

Giardia vaccine - This relatively new product may be valuable in a highly specialized market, mainly in larger breeding kennels which whelp and raise many puppies. It is unlikely to provide benefit as a routine vaccine. The effectiveness and safety of the Giardia vaccine in those special situations where it is used remains to be determined. Use of this vaccine would likely play an insignificant role in reducing the public health concerns of human Giardia infection.

Adverse Reactions

The risks of adverse reactions from vaccines are not well studied, nor are the adverse reactions rates well documented. Even where documented, the information is not readily available. The immune mediated hypersensitivities caused by vaccines are well known and occur in every species [4,10,11].

The most commonly observed hypersensitivity is a type I (immediate) reaction which is most often caused by IgE antibody resulting in a local or generalized anaphylaxis. The most common signs of local reactions are facial edema, hives, itching and rarely sneezing; signs of a systemic reaction include urination, vomiting, diarrhea, which is sometimes bloody, dyspnea and collapse.

According to a recent survey we have conducted, the most common vaccination reactions observed in dogs include pain, soreness, stiffness and/or lethargy at variable times after vaccination. Swelling, a persistent lump, irritation, hair loss and/or color change of hair at site of injection were also observed as common reactions.

A change of behavior was reported in a small percentage of dogs after vaccination. Post-vaccinal neurologic disease (e.g. encephalitis) was rare. All of the reactions noted above generally occur within minutes, hours or days after vaccination; they were, therefore, likely to have been associated with a vaccination. More recently, it has been shown experimentally that dogs develop an autoimmune response after vaccination, something that was known to occur in other species [11].

Furthermore, a study of dogs in veterinary clinics showed a slight increase in cases of autoimmune hemolytic anemia within 30 days following vaccination with multi-component vaccines [12]. It is very difficult to document a "cause and effect" relationship between vaccination and disorders occurring weeks to months after vaccination, but it would not be unexpected for vaccines to trigger immune-mediated disease (including autoimmune disorders) in a small percentage of animals [4, 5, 11,12].

Adverse reactions from vaccines should not be used as a reason not to vaccinate; instead, it is sensible not to use vaccines which are unnecessary, or to vaccinate more often than needed. In general, bacterial vaccines are more likely to cause immune-mediated reactions than do viral vaccines.

Killed vaccines, especially those which contain adjuvants, are more likely to cause adverse reactions than do modified live vaccines. On the other hand Killed Vaccines may be safer than Modified Live Vaccines. So therefore it is being debated since it is known that MLV is being more potent and dogs do react to this as well. Because of this each and every dog and their immune mediated reactions are genetically determined, some breeds, especially certain families of dogs, are at much greater risk of developing adverse reactions than the canine population as a whole [4].

SPECIAL NOTICE:

Most VETS will not tell you that the vaccines are really made for dogs weighing 60 pounds or about 28 kg when these animals take in a full shot dose. The manufacturers also will not admit to this because it creates problems for clients to understand.

Small dogs most particularly should be only given 1/2 dose intervals spread out. (Example> 0.5cc instead of a full 1.0cc dose) Giving a full shot to a small breed dog hits their immune system so hard and in a lot of cases their reactions can be ranging from mild to more on the severe side.

Therefore it is VERY IMPORTANT for the Dog Owners to TELL THE VET that you prefer that the VET give only 1/2 dose shot instead of the full one and that you will take the vaccine home and return back to the VET between 10-14 days later so the VET can give the other remaining half.

Be advised it is much safer and more prudent in doing so for your small animal and better for your dog in the long run.

Vaccine Information
Jan 26, 2008

Let's turn our attention to why we vaccinate when we do. Annual vaccination protocols started in the 1950s when the first canine distemper vaccines were developed. By 1961, the issue of the usefulness and necessity of vaccinating every year was being questioned but the research didn't exist to answer the question. The annual vaccination protocol was born largely because it was cheap to do and the science didn't exist to explain if this was the right or wrong thing to do.

So for the past fifty years or so many clinics have ingrained to many people to give dogs an annual distemper, hepatitis, and parvo vaccine, plus Kennel and Rabies. But things have started to change. In 1978, an "ideal vaccination program" was published in The Veterinary Clinics of North America that called for vaccinating every three years. This report was largely ignored at the time but is now viewed as visionary and laid the foundation for today's recommendations. Then, in 1998, largely in response to the concern that vaccines were causing cancer in cats, the American Association of Feline Practitioners created vaccine guidelines calling for vaccinating cats every three years for the high-risk or core diseases. Also in 1998, another group of canine vaccine experts published recommendations for every three year vaccine protocols. About the same time, many of the nation's top veterinary schools began implementing extended duration vaccine protocols. In 2002, the American Veterinary Medical Association, in response to emerging scientific data, updated their vaccine guidelines to allow for extended duration vaccine protocols. Finally, in 2003, the American Animal Hospital Association published its Canine Vaccine Guidelines calling for vaccinating every three years against distemper, adenovirus, and parvo. Just recently Rabies was added to this list and they do have 3 year Rabies shot Vaccines.

And that brings us to today. We've believed for a long time that certain vaccines lasted longer than a year, especially those against rabies, canine distemper, adenovirus, and parvo. The problem was, even for doctors who were giving these vaccines every three years, we didn't have USDA-approved three-year vaccines. We were betting that the older vaccines did what we hoped they did.

But now all of that has changed. Science has given us a USDA-approved vaccine that has been proven to protect dogs against distemper, adenovirus, and parvo for three years.


Vaccination Protocol For Animals treated with NDV
May 25, 2009
Greetings:

The is the Vaccination Protocol for any animal so treated with Newcastles Disease Virus Vaccine either in the body only or both the body and the Central Nervous System.

This particular program is designed specifically for these particular dogs to ensure adequate protection against the other diseases and also to make sure that certain vaccines of the modified Live versions are never given.

Number 1

All these dogs will not ever need to be vaccinated again for Distemper as they will have acquired full immunity for life with titers in the range of around 1/1600. In understanding what this means, normal titers of immunity to animals range between 1/20 to 1/40. As you can see the huge difference and for this to come down will take many years.

Number 2

Never at any time do you ever vaccinate these dogs with Modified Live Parvo Vaccine!!! This particular vaccine reacts to animals that have been treated with NDV.


Also do not give this Killed version vaccine along with the rest of the other normal vaccines as a combo. Always keep this vaccination completely separated from all other vaccines. The reason is Parvo opens up the blood brain barrier for around 10 days give or take and you want to prevent any kind of vaccine reaction ever taking place.

However to maintain the protection needed against Parvo virus, these animals can receive the Killed Parvo vaccine. When giving the dose do not exceed more than 1/2 dose shot at a time. First shot then wait 14 days and then give the second 1/2 shot. After that you only need to vaccinate this dog once every 5 years as the memory cells are still active and is good for 1000 years.

Number 3

You can give Rabies vaccine to these dogs and only give once every 3 years. You may use Modified Live version. Do not give more than once every 3 years.

Number 4

As to the rest of the vaccines being Bordetella (Kennel Cough), Parainfluenza, Lepto, and Hepatitis, and Lyme diseases, you may vaccinate these dogs once every 3 years. In regards to giving a combo of these vaccines do not give more than 1/2 dose at a time unless the animal weighs more than 60 pounds or 27.27kg. You give one shot, then wait 14 days and then give the final shot and you are good for the next 3 years.

In concern of the kennel cough use only when needed as it is not that critical. Situations requiring at least a kennel cough shot would be for transport of animals to other destinations, shows or if your animal is surrounded by a large number of dogs inside the household.

The Killed vaccine versions can be purchased at Jeffers web site. Please go to the NDV locator to find that site.

Thank you

Daveyo
Administrator/Founder

Revision History

May 25, 2009