Vaccines help protect your puppies from contracting contagious, debilitating and fatal diseases.
Puppies are routinely given a combination vaccine that protects them against canine distemper, virus, canine adenovirus (which causes hepatitis), parvovirus, parainfluenza and rabies. They should receive booster vaccines until they are five months old.
Staying on schedule with injections is important because of the “window of susceptibility” which refers to when a pup’s natal immunity, conferred by his mother’s milk, is too low to protect the puppy but still high enough to neutralize or diminish the effectiveness of the vaccine. A pup’s protection from his mother starts to subside and eventually vanishes when the pup is between 6 and 20 weeks old. Specialized blood tests are needed to determine the exact sequence.
Depending where you live, your vet may also choose to vaccinate your puppy against certain regional illnesses such as Lyme disease. Vets also recommend vaccinating against Leptospirosis as well–another infectious bacterial disease that can adversely affect your pup’s liver and kidneys and can also affect people.
Distemper is an extremely contagious and life-threatening disease transmitted by a virus which can be found in feces and urine but is also airborne. The Parvovirus is another serious illness that can kill puppies and dogs. It can strike the intestines or damage the heart muscles in young puppies depending whether it occurs in intestinal or cardiac form. Symptoms include vomiting and diarrhea. Parvovirus can kill even if treated. You can have your vet do an additional blood test after vaccination to make sure your puppy is adequately protected.
Your puppy will receive the rabies vaccination when he is between 3 and 4 months old, booster shots at 9 to 12 months and annually or every three years going forward.
Parainfluenza is a highly contagious canine disease that affects the respiratory system and is easily transmitted from dog to dog. Canine hepatitis, a viral disease which can harm the liver and kidneys and your pup’s ability to reproduce, cannot be contracted by humans.
Rabies poses a potentially deadly threat to an unvaccinated puppy, other mammals and human beings. Raccoons, skunks, foxes, bats can carry it. The disease is spread through saliva into a wound inflicted by a rabid animal. Once an animal exhibits symptoms of rabies–suddenly acting timid or vicious, difficulty swallowing and a loss of coordination, the condition is fatal. Vaccination Bordatella (kennel cough) is given at a veterinarian’s discretion if he/she determines your puppy may have had exposure that would put him at risk for developing it, such as a history of frequently interacting with other dogs or boarding at at kennel.
When it comes to disease, your puppy can’t look out for himself. Vaccination is one way to do everything you can to give him a longer, healthier, happier life.