Why and How Often to Vaccinate Pets

Dr. Nartišs has compiled the most popular questions about animal vaccination, take a look!

§ Why is it necessary to vaccinate your dog/cat?

To protect the animal from unpleasant, even life-threatening diseases;

To avoid high treatment costs;

To ensure the animal’s immune system is prepared for contact with specific infectious disease agents;

To protect humans from diseases that can affect both animals and humans (zoonoses), such as Leptospirosis, Rabies, etc.

§ When should you start vaccinating an animal?

Starting from 6-8 weeks of age (depending on the vaccine manufacturer), when antibodies acquired from the mother’s milk begin to lose their effectiveness.

§ Is there a need to vaccinate an old animal?

Just like young animals, old animals are also at risk, and the clinical course of illness in old animals will always be more severe than in younger animals. Even if you have adopted an old animal without prior vaccination information, it is necessary to visit a veterinarian for a clinical examination and to create a vaccination schedule for your pet.

§ Is it necessary to vaccinate an animal if it never goes outside?

Of course, because humans can bring infections home on their shoes and clothes.

§ Is it true that all necessary antibodies are received by newborns through their mother’s milk?

As long as the newborn is suckling its mother’s milk, yes (provided the mother is vaccinated), but as soon as the newborn is fed something else, the antibodies received from the mother’s milk disappear within a few weeks.

§ Can my animal get sick if it has been vaccinated against a specific disease?

Vaccine manufacturers usually include the most common strains of disease agents in their vaccines, but it can happen that an animal comes into contact with a rarer strain of the disease agent, which will cause clinical illness. However, it will proceed in a much milder form, and the animal’s chance of survival will be many times greater than if it were unvaccinated.

§ How often should an animal be vaccinated?

This, of course, depends on the chosen vaccine, but for most diseases, the revaccination period is 1 year.

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