Vaccinating Your Pet

It’s a safe and effective way to protect pets and people from serious disease.Rabies is a deadly virus that affects all mammals. It is the law that all dogs and cats must be vaccinated, not only to protect your pets, but your family as well. This area sees several cases of rabies every year, therefore vaccinating is very important.It’s common for your pet to experience mild side effects from vaccination. Typically starting within hours of vaccination, any symptoms are most often mild and usually do not persist for more than a few days. This is a normal response by your pet’s immune system during the process of developing protective immunity.

Symptoms

Common symptoms your pet may experience:

• Mild fever

• Diminished appetite or activity

• Sneezing or other respiratory signs with intranasal vaccines

• Discomfort or mild swelling at the injection site

Rare symptoms could include:

• Swelling to face

• Repeated vomiting or diarrhea

• Whole body itching

Rare side effects, such as an allergic reaction, may occur. Your pet may experience symptoms of a more serious reaction to the vaccine within minutes or hours of the vaccination.

Difficulty breathing if your pet experiences any of these rare symptoms, you should contact us immediately, as your pet may require additional medical treatment.

DOGS

Heartworm Testing and Prevention

Heartworm disease is transmitted from one dog to another by mosquitoes. Untreated, the disease is fatal. The best way to protect your dog is a heartworm preventative given year round and a yearly blood test to insure a heartworm free status is maintained.

Lyme Disease Testing and Prevention

Lyme disease is a dangerous tick-borne, bacterial disease that affects both people and dogs. Lyme disease is spreading rapidly throughout the country. It can cause joint pain, arthritis, kidney failure and heart failure. One out of four dogs test positive for this disease in our area although not all show symptoms. When we test your pet for Lyme disease, the test is looking for the antibodies their immune system has built to ward off the disease after they have been bitten by a tick carrying the bacteria.Fortunately, there is a vaccine we can give to dogs to prevent Lyme disease becoming harmful to them. The vaccine being one line of defense against the disease, flea and tick control medication is another.

Bordetella (Infectious Tracheobronchitis) or ‘Kennel Cough’

Bordetella is the most prevalent upper respiratory problem in dogs in the country. It is highly contagious in dogs and can develop into Pneumonia

DHPP

Distemper Virus is airborne and affects the lungs, brain and intestines. This disease causes a respiratory infection, neurological symptoms, behavioral changes and trouble breathing.

Hepatitis is caused by the canine adenovirus type 1, which results in respiratory infections and kidney and liver failure.

Parainfluenza virus is highly contagious and can lead to infectious bronchitis, respiratory infections and even pneumonia.

Parvovirus is a highly contagious, deadly viral disease. The virus attacks rapidly, dividing cells in a dog’s body, most severely affecting the intestinal tract.

Leptospirosis

Leptospirosis is an infectious disease that can affect many mammals including wildlife, rodents, dogs and people. This disease is caused not just by one specific strain of Leptospira but rather by any of a number of different serovars (types). The disease is most commonly spread through the urine of wildlife. ‘Lepto’ can cause liver and kidney failure.

CATS

Feline Leukemia and FIV Testing and Prevention

Any cat that has an opportunity to come in contact with outdoor cats has an increased risk of becoming infected. Alternatively, these diseases can be transmitted by a mother cat at birth. These viruses attack blood cell production in the cat, resulting in severe anemia. Unfortunately, there is no cure for these deadly viruses.Testing is most commonly done on kittens over the age of 8 weeks, but also performed on adult cats with unknown history. Once, the test has shown a negative result for both viruses a healthy cat can be vaccinated for Feline Leukemia. At this point in time, there is not a vaccination again FIV.

FVRCP

FVRCP Vaccination fights three feline viruses: rhinotracheitis, calicivirus and panleukopenia. The vaccination is named after the viruses:

Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis is caused by the feline herpes virus, it’s a common virus that invades the nose lining, sinuses, throat, windpipe, and eye membranes.

Calicivirus is a common respiratory infection that affects the cat’s throat, eyes, nasal passages, mouth and sometimes lungs, intestines, and musculoskeletal system. Severe cases can also cause pneumonia.

Panleukopenia, also called feline distemper, is a highly contagious virus affecting blood cells in the intestinal tract, bone marrow, brain, and developing fetuses. Most commonly seen in kittens between four and six months, panleukopenia can strike any unvaccinated cat.