WHAT TO DO ABOUT RABIES VACCINATION SIDE EFFECTS

ADVICE FOR VACCINATION SIDE EFFECTS

09/20/2008: Linda from Roanoke, VA writes: "My vet does a test to determine if the antibodies are still present. If they are, there is no need to give the shots> Rabies is still required by law, but neither of mine had to have any other this year. They always test before they give any of these shots or the bordatella."

The above information is offered for education purposes only and a vet should be consulted when a course of action is desired."

THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND

VACCINATION READER FEEDBACK

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/20/2008: Nicola from Lakewood, Ohio writes: "I took my Jack Russel Terrier (English/Irish) for her shots. She had the DHLPP and the Rabies shots in her thigh. That evening and the following day she was lethargic then she got a really high fever and her back was in pain. She would not get up, walk or go up and down the stairs. She has had these shots before but I never expected this and I am worried for the next time that the reaction may kill her. The vet gave her a shot and some medicine but could not really say what caused the illness. I feel it is to much of a coincidence for it not to be the vaccinations I just do not know which one!"

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/16/2008: Taryn from Lansing, Michigan writes: "I can't find help for our Pug. He is 1yr. 3months. He had Rabies and Canine Boosters (Dis. Lep. Par. Parvo Adeno.2) He is sick and I can't get him any help on Sunday."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/15/2008: Julie from Newmarket, Ontario, Canada writes: "When my German shorthaired pointer was 14 months, she came to live with me after being 'rejected' as conformation/show stock. Her breeder was a vet technician and therefore, 'Rachael' was up-to-date on all of the traditional vaccines. When she was 16 months old, I took her to my holistic vet for her rabies booster. The month before she had been given two vaccines and my vet wanted to seperate the vaccines.
Shortly after receiving her rabies vaccine, 'Rachael' broke out in a rash all over her underbody from her chin to her groin. A few days later, the rash turned into blistery sores that scabbed on the tops. I treated her underbody with black tea soaked tea towels."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/15/2008: Gail (jesusaves[at]rocketmail.com) from Gastonia, NC writes: "I have a 5 month-old daschund/chihuahua/shih-tzu/terrier mix named Joshua. He went to the vet at 4 months old to receive his first round of shots- which had already been given by the breeder, but which the vet would not recognize! SO...puppy had double shots! Our county requires an annual rabies vaccine, and the puppy MUST have all of these other shots BEFORE they will give him the rabies! UGH!!

They gave him DHLPP shots, and a rabies vaccine at the same time. He weighed 9 pounds at that time.45 minutes later he became violently ill- throwing up all over the place. I immediately called the vet, who told me that it was from the car ride home! (This puppy rides in the car a lot, and had never thorwn up before.)

He limped for a couple of days, and was lethargic- just layed around doing nothing. (And this is a VERY active puppy.)

3 weeks later, the vet had me bring the puppy back in- at which time he gave him a DHLPP booster shot, and neutered him.

Joshua was so sick- he peed on himself for a whole day, and didn't move much at all for a few days.

I DO NOT want to get him this vaccine next year, but am not sure what to do, as it's the law here. Very frustrating!"

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/15/2008: Black Chase from Columbia, MD writes: "Reaction to feline leukima shot and distemper combo given at hospital. My very healthy cat (temp 99)went to Banneker for an annual on his 1 year birthday. By Am he hide under the bed, screamed in pain if touched and had a stinky dry mouth. His temperture was at 104.4. What do you thin happened? They claim he diveloped a urinary infection. Any ideas?"

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/12/2008: Amber from Malden, Missouri writes: "My puppy (4 months old) got her first rabies vaccination last week, I noticed yesterday that she has a large knot where they gave the shot. I, too, am worried about giving her another rabies shot. I disagree with our state's one year law for rabies shots when it is proven by science that the rabies vaccination can last for 7 years."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/12/2008: Libby from Pisgah Forest, NC writes: "I took my Italian Greyhound, Pucci in for her annual DA2PP vaccine yesterday, and she had side effects from it.....lethargy, a bump on the vaccination site, and also would not eat or drink, except for her treats. She is getting peppier now, and is starting to eat as of this evening. The same thing happened last year. She still has the bump, so hopefully that will subside as well. I look forward to next year, when they will start separating the vaccines and give each individual vaccines every three years. Maybe that will alleviate the side effects??? I hope so!! Pucci had her 3 yr. rabies shot two weeks ago and there were no side effects. From what I have read, lethargy for a couple of days, lack of appetite and the bump are common side effects."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/10/2008: Faye from Long Valley, NJ, USA writes: "Our 12 week old black lab mix had his second distemper/parvo shot with a lyme disease vaccination. The following day, he could not stand or walk on his own. Our vet contacted the manufacturer's of the vaccine. They acknowledged other dogs having this reaction but the cases were so few that they do not place warnings on their bottles. Our vet treated him with predizone and I began Benadryl 3x daily. Within the first couple of days our pup was back on his feet and playing. We have reduced the predizone and the results have been a gradual improvement. I have discussed this problem with a knowledgeable rescue for animals and they always give a dose of Benadryl (1/2 cc) before every puppy gets their first vaccine to avoid this reaction."

my 6 year old auss.shepherd male dog. received his rabies shot on aug.18.2008 around mid sept. he started getting sick on and off. i thought it was his food. so i changed it. soon he didnt want to eat much of the food either.then he kept getting sick. i took him to the emergency,his blood work came back he has anemia.he was 52 lbs. now he is 45 lbs. he has never been sick. i am very upset. i am sorry i took him to the vet. i truly believe its from the shot. please if this has happened to others i need to know if there is a connection. thank you. in az.l.andersen"

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/06/2008: Sandy from Vineland, NJ writes: "My 11 month old recently adopted female Golden Retriever just got her first Lyme vaccine. Within 12 hours she has diarrhea and its been two days. I believe this is a direct result of the vaccine because nothing else has changed and her stools were find up unto the vaccine."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/05/2008: Glenda from Stoughton, WI writes: "We took our Miniature Daschund, Hannah in for her third distemper vaccination yesterday and she had a severe reaction. The first shot gave her a reaction and we had to take her back to the vet for steroids, I questioned them on whether this shot was really necessary given the severity of her reaction. They indicated it was and that if we pre medicated her she would be fine. We did pre medicate for the second shot and there was no reaction. Yesterday she began vomiting, loose stools, face began swelling, eyes swelled shut, veins in ears swollen and she was obviously in pain. She went back to the vet for steriod injections and benadryl. We have to give benadryl every 12 hours for 2 more days. There will be no more distemper shots for this dog, she is too valuable to us."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/04/2008: Amie from New Britain, CT, USA writes: "My Italian Greyhound (16 weeks old) got her distemper booster earlier today - the 3rd set of the vaccination in a set of 3. Now she seems to be really sore in the shoulder where she received the shot. A large lump has appeared.. it's really, really soft, almost like a giant blister under her fur and skin. That's the best way I can describe it. It's not so much like it's swollen, but more jiggly. I'm pretty worried about her now because she shrieks in pain if you rest your hand against it. I don't know if this is a normal reaction or if I should be worried. She has had a tendency to overreact (quite vocally) to certain things, such as loud noises."

It is now a year later and he still has a bald spot on his shoulder. We have since then switched vets but I am very reluctant to give him or my other dog their boosters or rabies shots because of this."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  11/01/2008: Darleen from Milford, CT writes: "My dog has IVD, which was diagnosed on his 9th Birthday, after a severe symptom outbreak, shortly after receiving the combo vaccination of Bortadella/Parvo/Leptosporosis. After an MRI, steroids & ongoing weekly acupuncture, he had his mobility back until the annual vaccination was again due. To be conservative, I asked that the vaccination be separated. Therefore, he had Bortadella, Parvo & Leptosporosis vaccinations separately, 2 plus weeks apart. That is why it was easy to determine that 24 hours after the Leptosporosis vaccination, he had back disc/pain/ambulatory problems as severe as the year before. He was on steroids for a month until he could resume acupuncture weekly again. His chart was marked "No Lepto." However, he continued to have intermittent setbacks until the most severe one 5 weeks ago. He was again treated with steroids which helped but did not get him fully functional. Yesterday, I had bloodwork done for the neurosurgical consult. Today, I was informed that he now has hepatitus/advanced liver enzymes which could be caused by steroids but is also caused by Leptosporosis. You requested feedback for negative reactions to vaccinations so I hope this will be useful."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  10/31/2008: Cheryl from Eaton Rapids, MI USA writes: "We just went through the most horrific experience with our beloved 11 year old cat. She was acting funny, so the next morning we took her to our vet which was only open until noon (Sat.). He gave her an antibiotic shot. When we got her home she started having seizures and was eating like a pig in between the seizures. Our vet was closed for the weekend, so we found a vet in another city that was open. They asked if she was current on her vaccinations. She hardly ever went outside, and I don't like to give vaccinations...so we said no. They immediately took her in the back and put her on anti-seizure med. The next day her seizures stopped, but they convinced us that she was shutting down. We decided to put her to sleep. They called back and said "BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T HAVE HER RABIES VACCINATION, THEY'D HAVE TO CUT OFF HER HEAD AND SEND IT TO THE LAB FOR TESTING!!!" They said she scratched two people which I don't believe because she was so lethargic. I am so torn up to this day. They sent our beloved "Moo" home to bury with no head. I cry as I write this and cry every day. There was nothing we could do because they reported it to the State. That clinic should have either refused to see her, or told us what could happen if she bites or scratches someone. We would have left NOW. After all was done...we found out that her first reaction was probably a pork splinter stuck in her throat, and the second was the reaction to the shot...both misdiagnosed. We miss her so much. Thanks for reading."

[SIDE EFFECTS]  10/29/2008: Barbara Oberle from Kingston, RI writes: "My 4 year old neutered male cat had booster shots for rabies and distemper yesterday. Since then he has been lethargic and not eating."

10/24/2008: Nancy (fatbutfoxy@yahoo.com) from Flushing , Michigan, USA writes: "I have a 11 month old bloodhound. When she was 6 months old, she was spayed. About a week later, she became lethargic. I took her back to the vet, fearing an infection. He treated her with ampicillan. A few days after that, she started developing neurological symptoms, i.e. walking on the top of her right, front paw. I immediately took her back to the vet, He placed her on a steroid and Bactrin, She improved, but her symptoms worsened when weaned from the steroid. She was falling, lost the sight in her right eye, was walking on her paw, and seemed to have generalized right sided weakness. He referred her to a neurologist, who did a spinal tap, which showed a virus.-unspecified. The treatment changed to high doses of Batril, Ammoxocillan and steroid. Her condition has improved somewhat, but not a great deal. She is no longer faling or walking on her paw, and has regained some sight, but since being weaned from the Bactrin, is now rounding. This has been going on two weeks now. We have raised the steroid to 40 mgs twice a day. With very little improvement. We have considered more Batril,,

The original vet has now found another dog that developed similiar symptoms, and who was in the hosptial at the same time.

Any ideas? suggestions? She is only a baby, could these side effects be from the vaccine?"

Our 3 y/o Chihuaua had a Lymes booster shot when she was about 2 y/o. They apparently give the same dose no matter what size they are. She weighed appr. 6 lbs at the time. She was really sick for two days with flu like S/S. She recovered, but now she has been getting front and back leg tremors. It started with just one side, but I noticed it has gone to the other side as well. We didn't realize until after the shot that this condition has been reported. We are sick to death about it and and know her quality of life is now affected and quite possibly her length of life also. We have not found any remedy :-("

[SIDE EFFECTS]  10/22/2008: Kelly (knutile[at]hotmail.com) from Chicago, Il writes: "I rescued an abandoned lab about a month ago, took him to the vet who decided to give him Rimadyl and Simplicef for a sore on the pad of his foot. He seemed to react fine so a few weeks later I took him in for his rabies shot, 1st round of Bordetella and DHPPC shots. I went back 2 weeks after the for the second round of Bordetella and DHPPC and scheduled him to be nuetred in 4 weeks.

Within those 4 weeks my dog became sick and began to vomit a yellow bile. When I took him in to be neutered his platelet count came back really low and the vet put him on Doxycycline and Prednisone. We tested for tick titers that came back negative and they still don't know what is wrong with him.

I'm so angry that the vet didn't wait longer between vaccines and antibiotics before scheduling him for surgery. If she hadn't done a blood test before surgery, my dog would have bleed out on the operating room table.

And now I can't afford to keep taking him to the vet and don't know what to do."