Side Effects of Pet Vaccines: A Closer Look

I took my two chihuahua puppies in for their 16 week shots one month ago. All previous shots were well tolerated. I asked for the vet to give them a bordetella shot just in case I needed to board them when I go on vaation. Within minutes of administering the nasal vaccination, one of my puppies began snorting. I thought he was just trying to get the liquid out of his nose. It is now about a month later and he has developed a permanent cough. I am treating him with medication twice a day, but I don't know how long I will need to do this. The vet is now saying he has a collapsed trachea, but he never coughed before the bordetella. I think the vaccination did some permanent damage to him, or at the very least made a slight genetic issue much, much worse.

Bordatella allergic reaction:

Our one year old lab went in today for his routine vaccinations. A few hours later the vet called to say we forgot his Bordatella. Our lab received it (through the nose). About an hour later his eyes and mouth area were very swollen. The vet said to give him Benadryl. We also gave him a bag of ice to chew. This helped calm him and hydrated him at the same time.

My dog had a severe allergic reaction to her 3rd (16 week) C5 injection. She is a Foxy cross Maltese, very small build. About 20 minutes after she had the injection (we had reached home) her eyes started to become blood shot. Having severe allergies myself, I saw the sign at once and said we better get back to the vet. Minutes later her face, ears started swelling, so we got in the car and rushed her to the vet. She stopped breathing on the way, so my husband had to give her mouth to nose/mouth. Once we got there they gave her a steriod injection and she lost control of her bowels. Thank GOD that she recovered.

We haven't gotten her immunised since then and she is going on 6 years old. She has gotten kennel cough since then (we also have a dog with addison's disease so have to go to the vet every 25 days) but on the whole has been healthy.

My 3.5 year old Golden Doodle is extremely sick, she has been vomiting for 1.5 days and cannot keep down any food or liquid. She is scratching herself, and her nose is a little swollen. Today is 12.17.08, she had her vaccines on 12.09.08. Last year, again about 1 week after her vaccines, she became ill in exactly the same fashion! Had I known for certain that last year her vaccines caused this she would not have had the "booster" shots this year. She had the following: DA2PP Booster, Rabies Canine 1 yr Booster and the Bordetella Vaccine. The vet was not surprised, unlike last year when they had "no idea why Alphie was so sick". Now I know for sure why! The vet said to take away her food and give her only small amounts of water - too much of either will make her vomit. Small amounts of water and ID food, along with Pepcid AC and Benadryl. Rice and Boiled ground beef are also ok to feed her - although nothing - NOTHING - stays down.

CHEYENNE, Wyoming Passes 3 Year Rabies Ordinance!!

It's official!!! On December 8, 2008, the Cheyenne City Council passed a 3 year rabies ordinance which included a medical exemption for sick animals -- thanks to the efforts of Wyoming dog owners, led by Karon Volk of Karontara Irish Wolfhounds, who initially raised concerns about the city's outdated annual booster protocol.

CHEYENNE ? City Eases Rabies Vaccine Rules Wyoming Tribune Eagle, Page A3, Tuesday, December 9, 2008 by Jodi Rogstad

The City's Dogs and Cats will No Longer Need to Get Rabies Shots Every Year. Pet owners now have the option to have their animal companions vaccinated once every three years. Monday, the Cheyenne City Council voted 8-2 to change the city's rabies vaccine ordinance.

Cheyenne City Council http://cheyenne.granicus.com/AgendaViewer.php?view_id=2&clip_id=57

9. ORDINANCE - 3RD READING - Amending Section 6.12.020, Rabies Tags, of Chapter 6.12, Dog and Cat Registration, and Section 6.16.020, Rabies Vaccination Required, of Chapter 6.16, Rabies Control, of Title 6, Animals, of the Code of the City of Cheyenne, Wyoming. (PUBLIC SERVICES COMMITTEE)

ACTION: Approved as amended by substitute



ARKANSAS Considers 3 Year Rabies Law

Health Department Discusses Change In Pet Vaccination Law The Morning News November 22, 2008 http://www.nwaonline.net/articles/2008/11/22/news/112308lrpetvaccinations.txt

"LITTLE ROCK -- Arkansas and Alabama are the only states that still require annual rabies vaccinations for dogs and cats, but that could change in the 2009 session."

What You Can Do to Help: Contact the Arkansas Legislature http://www.arkleg.state.ar.us/ and ask them to pass the 3 year rabies legislation when it is introduced and request that a medical exemption clause for sick animals be included.

WICHITA, Kansas Weighing 3 Year Rabies Ordinance

City Seeking Vets' Input on Rabies Wichita Eagle November 15, 2008 "The city of Wichita is asking area veterinarians if it should change its ordinance requiring dogs to be vaccinated yearly against rabies."

What You Can Do to Help: Give the Wichita City Council a call and ask them to adopt a 3 year protocol with a medical exemption clause for sick animals.

MISSISSIPPI and SOUTH CAROLINA 3 Year Rabies Laws

A number of pet owners in Mississippi and South Carolina have been under the mistaken impression that their states require annual rabies boosters. Both states have 3 year protocols.

MISSISSIPPI Rabies Laws (for questions about Mississippi's 3 year protocol, contact State Veterinarian, Mississippi State Veterinarian, Dr. Jim Watson 601-359-1170) http://www.mbah.state.ms.us/disease_programs/rabies/ms_rabies_laws.htm

All dogs and cats shall be vaccinated against rabies at three months of age, revaccinated one year later and every three years thereafter,using a rabies vaccine approved as providing a 3-year immunity.

SOUTH CAROLINA Rabies Control Title 47 SECTION 47-5-60 (for questions about the 3 year protocol in South Carolina, call State Veterinarian, Dr. Stephanie Cox 803-898-4042) Inoculation of pets; certificates and tags.

A pet owner must have his pet inoculated against rabies at a frequency to provide continuous protection of the pet from rabies using a vaccine approved by the department and licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture. Evidence of rabies inoculation is a certificate signed by a licensed veterinarian

TENNESSEE Rabies Laws

Tennessee dog owners have launched an effort requesting the state to consistently enforce the 3 year rabies immunization requirement set forth in Tennessee law Title 68 Chapter 8 tennessee.gov/sos/acts/103/pub/pc0765.pdf . The RabiesVaccinationChallengeinTN Yahoo Group they formed can be found at http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/RabiesVaccinationChallengeinTN/?v=1&t=search&ch=web&pub=groups&sec=group&slk=3 .


THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND

The Rabies Challenge Fund earned the endorsements of canine celebrities, Rin Tin Tin and Benji http://www.RabiesChallengeFund.org , and Jan Rasmusen author of the national-award-winning health care book, Scared Poopless: The Straight Scoop on Dog Care, will send an autographed copy of her book for donations to The Rabies Challenge Fund above $500 http://www.dogs4dogs.com/truth4dogs.html .

November marks the one year anniversary since the concurrent 5 and 7 year challenge studies began at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine, and the fund has raised $166,778 of the $209,000 needed to fund the studies' second year budget.

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I took my 6 month old cat in for a distemper shot and later that night she went into a violent seizure that lasted maybe 30 seconds...she finally clamed down but wasn't quite heself a few hours later We went to the emergengy room around 4 a.m. I was told she had a fever of 104 and the inital blood work showed nothing. 2000 dollars is the approx. cost for this visit including all the additional test that need to be done. I won't know the results until later today. I'll have to do a follow up for this feed back

I DO NOT RECOMMEND A DISTEMPER SHOT
My cat was fine before this shot. I was never informed of any side effects

Please note that the FVRCP shot is for feline viral rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, and panleukopenia. The Rabies shot is normally a separate shot.

Well, today I went to pick up my 8 week old Toy fox terrier. The breeder had givin her her first distemper-parvo vaccination just last night around 7pm. I brought her to my home. She was playful, crying and making noises like any puppy would do. At some point her stomach had hardened and she was kinda out of it. My brother was there who is familiar with seizures. The dog was placed on the floor at which she had a seizure. Her head tilted to the side and her body did too. After that she could not stand up, her breathing became very heavy, and she was very lathergic . I called the breeder and she did gladly take her back and was going to take her to the vet.

Once I got home I did some research and realised that this could all be do to the shots she had. I am a big believer now that these shots are really dangerous and not really needed.

I haven't heard the condition of the puppy but hope all is well.

My 14 month old shihtzu was in for her annual3 days ago. Without looking at her file, the new vet gave her rabies, dhlpp, and bordatella all at once. within 5 minutes in the office she immediately began vomiting and losing control of her bowels. The vet took her to the back, and gave her some fluids under her skin and something for nausea. He told me she would be woozy for a few hours when i got her home, and when he handed her to me she was like a barely breathing puppy corpse. When we got home, she was extremely lethargic and her gums were tacky, and she started to have bright red bloody diarrhea. I called the emergency line for the vet and met him at the clinic, where he gave her more fluids under her skin because he was unable to find a vein bc her blood pressure was so low, and he also gave her some benadryl. We took her home again, hoping she would feel better in the morning. When we woke up, the bathroom was covered in blood from her stool, so we rushed her back to the vet where they admitted her. She has now been there nearly 48 hours, and all the vet can say is that I should not bring her home because she might not make it without her IV> ...anyone else had issues like this? I am devastated!

we took our very fit 11 yr old cocker spaniel fo his yearly booster,after he seemed very sleepy & 3 days later he was very sick ,has lost his appetite, been very lethargic & has had conjunctivitus.We took him back to the vets & they gave him an antibiotic injection & some medicine to settle his stomach.We are now 10 days further on and still there is no improvement.

Frequency of side effects

Anika from Auckland wrote that side effects are less frequent than 0.001%. I wonder where she got that number from. Veterinarians hardly ever report the side effects they see in their clinics.

George Moore and co-workers give quite a different picture in their study "Adverse events diagnosed within three days of vaccine administration in dogs", JAVMA 2005. The incidence is as high as 0.38%. Risk factors: young age, small breed, number of vaccines that are given simultaneously. A similar study on side effects in cats showed an incidence of 0.48% (Moore et al, JAVMA 2007). I think that these studies do not reveal the full extent of side effects, due to their limited time frames and limited set of diagnoses.

But incidences and percentages are really moot if your own cat dies from a vaccine-caused sarcoma (as one of our cats did). Cause of death: unnecessary revaccinations.

There is no immunological justification for annual (or triennial) revaccinations with modified-live viral vaccines (canine distemper, canine parvo, canine hepatitis, canine parainfluenzavirus; feline parvovirus, feline herpesvirus, feline calicivirus). Period.

With deepest sympathy to all those who lost their cat or dog because of over-vaccination,

Monika
(My apologies for my poor English.)

Hi guys, I am sure that you are all caring pet owners who want what is best for your animals. I am shocked to see so many generalisations on this website. It is true that a very very low minority of animals develop some kind of vaccine related reaction. However, millions of pets are vaccinated for the core vaccines (distemper, parvo, canine adenovirus) on a yearly basis with no side effects (less than 0.001%). These are meant to ensure that the majority of animals are protected against diseases that are widespread, extremely virulent and highly infectious. These vaccines are safe & efficious and provide a high risk/benefit ratio to warrant their use.

In the past few years, a reduced overall prevalence of infectious disease has led to a decreased awareness and perception of risk, this is, for a great part, due to the great success of canine vaccines!!

Mass media in the UK and US have put pressure on vets and "freaked out" pet owners whilst overlooking the benefits of vaccination.

I am not saying there are no problems or never side effects. Just remember there are two sides to every argument and diseases like parvo & distemper are on the rise again and are a painful and miserable way to die!

My Boston Terrier had his annual rabies and distemper/parvo cocktail shots yesterday at the Animal Welfare League where I adopted him a year ago. He has been inactive and shaky since. He has eaten regularly and is going out on his own as usual.

Today, though, he started whining/yelping when he is picked up. He's not his high-energy self. I'm watching him closely. I know where the emergency vet is although now I think I want to seek out a holistic vet.

A sidenote, when I was a kid we had 3 dogs that saw the vet once when they were puppies, never took heartworm meds or any kind meds. They all lived to be 13+ years old so are vaccines really necessary if you are a mindful pet parent? Meaning you watch them when they go out, check for parasites, feed them good food, give them exercise, etc.

Last year, I had to put down my 13 y.o. lab mix after a pancreatitus attack that I'm convinced was caused by the "treats" of smoked pig ears. My vet said they are very fatty and older dogs shouldn't eat them. Why aren't there warnings on the bags?

Well, I guess I'm on sick pup watch for the day!

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!

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.

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!

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.

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.

Hello I have a 17wk chihiuaha he had his Parvo Vaccine and now he is vommiting and diarrhea same symptoms as your dog can you please tell me the outcome or how long did it last? I am really worried about him he was a gift to my son and the breeder told me to wait until he was 1 to do anything but when i took him to the Vet they told me I was crazy and he needed them asap. I only did the Parvo one but now I am thinking I should of listened to the Breeder Please reply he was a gift for my son he just turned 8 and after losing our dog last year we were not going to give it another shot with a puppy because we never really got over our lil Diamond so please contact me thank you Angelica