Vaccination is used to protect your pet against serious infectious diseases which can be very contagious, particularly serious or even fatal.
The number of vaccines available in dogs has increased considerably over the years and protection against more and more diseases is thus possible.
How does a vaccine work?
The principle of vaccination consists in bringing the animal’s body into contact with very low doses of virus or bacteria in order to protect it against any future attack by these pathogenic agents. Each vaccine contains at least part of the disease-causing particle, either live or inactivated. You need to be extremely careful and keep an eye embedded fully ticks on dogs to keep your pets safe from various diseases. A tick remover for cats is the best idea to remove them at once.
The immune system (the body’s surveillance and defense system) has memory. When confronted for the first time with a pathogenic agent (virus or bacterium), the body reacts by modifying certain cells to make them capable of producing specific antibodies against this agent.
When a vaccine is administered to dogs, the animal’s organism reacts as if it were really infected and develops during the following 2 weeks a specially targeted immunity against the injected micro-organism. A second injection must generally be performed 2 to 4 weeks later: This second injection is necessary to obtain effective and lasting protection.
Vaccination therefore aims to prevent and protect the animal against a disease before it encounters it.
What diseases should I protect my dog against?
A classification distinguishes so-called “essential” vaccines from “non-essential” vaccines.
An essential vaccine is a vaccine which it is considered that it should be administered to dogs worldwide regardless of their living conditions because it protects against serious infectious diseases, often fatal and present in all regions of the globe.
The following are classified as essential vaccines: Distemper, Canine Adenovirus (Hepatitis) and Parvovirus Type 2 and its variants.
Some countries will identify additional vaccines that they consider essential. For example, against the Rabies virus. In many countries, vaccination against Rabies is a legal obligation, so it is very often mandatory for international transport of pets.
A non-essential vaccine is a vaccine whose use depends on the risk of geographical exposure and the living conditions of the animal. Non-essential vaccines include vaccines against leptospirosis, kennel cough…
Be careful, so-called “non-essential” vaccines may be essential for your pet! For example, leptospirosis is a disease that is not present worldwide and the vaccine against this disease is classified as “non-essential”. Nevertheless, leptospirosis is a serious disease, present in all regions of the United States and to which all dogs are exposed, regardless of their lifestyle. Any dog living in France must therefore be vaccinated against leptospirosis.
Diseases for which most dogs are vaccinated:
Parvovirus: Serious and highly contagious disease. It is caused by Parvovirus, a very resistant virus in the external environment. Parvovirus is the cause of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis that can lead to the death of the animal. Unvaccinated dogs and puppies are at higher risk. Contamination occurs during nasal or oral contact with sick dogs or their stools. This virus can be carried on the clothing, soles or fur of animals.
Distemper: Serious and highly contagious disease. This disease is caused by a virus, Morbillivirus, transmitted to dogs by oral-nasal contact via secretions or excretions containing the virus. The virus can reach the digestive tract, the respiratory tract, the urinary tract, as well as the central nervous system, thus causing a wide variety of symptoms.
Infectious hepatitis (Hepatitis Rubarth): Serious illness. It is caused by the canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1) virus. This virus is transmitted to the dog by oral-nasal contact via secretions or excretions containing the virus. It leads to the destruction of liver cells and therefore symptoms of hepatitis. It can cause other symptoms in the digestive system, the respiratory system, the urinary system, the eyes, and sometimes the central nervous system. Any dog less than 12 months old and not vaccinated is said to be “at risk”, ie it presents an increased risk of contracting the disease.
Leptospirosis: Serious, contagious and zoonotic disease (can be transmitted to humans) caused by a bacterium. This bacterium is found in stagnant water and soil. Transmission takes place through infected urine, either by contact with damaged skin or by contact with mucous membranes (ingestion of urine). This disease can affect several organs, very often the kidneys and the liver, but also the nervous system, the eyes, the genital tract, the digestive system… Animals living in rural areas are more at risk but all dogs are exposed.
Why should my dog receive multiple vaccination boosters?
In the first days after giving birth, the female dog secretes a thick, yellowish liquid called colostrum in her udders. The latter is rich in antibodies of maternal origin (AOM). Thanks to their feedings of the first days, most puppies are thus protected during their first weeks of life by these maternal antibodies. This immunity will usually be gone by 8-12 weeks of age in most puppies.
The protection of the puppy in its first weeks of life and its ability to respond to vaccination directly depends on the quantity of antibodies of maternal origin ingested during cloistral intake.
Knowing that antibodies of maternal origin interact with vaccine antigens, there is interference between AOM and vaccination, making the vaccine ineffective for a puppy with a lot of AOM.
Thereby:
- Puppies with low maternal antibodies are potentially susceptible to disease at a younger age, but are better able to respond to vaccination.
- Conversely, puppies with a high maternal antibody load will be better protected from disease in their first weeks of life but will be unable to respond well to vaccination until they are over 12 weeks old.
No single primary vaccination will therefore be able to cover all situations and a puppy, in order to benefit from effective vaccine protection, must receive several injections of the same vaccine.
The recommendation established by the Vaccination Guidelines Committee (VDC) is therefore an initial essential vaccination at the age of 6 to 8 weeks, then every 2 to 4 weeks until the age of 16 weeks. The number of vaccinations therefore depends on the age at which the vaccinations were started and the chosen interval between vaccinations. It is recommended that the last vaccination in the first series of core vaccines be given, if possible, at 16 weeks of age or older.
For “essential” vaccines, a booster vaccination will be carried out at the age of 12 months or 12 months after the last vaccine of the first series of vaccinations for the puppy. The aim of this vaccine is to ensure that an effective protective immune response is present for each dog.
The CDV proposes, to prevent the occurrence of infectious diseases (such as parvovirus) in dogs under 12 months, to reduce this window by advancing the vaccination booster from 52 weeks (1 year) to 26 weeks (6 months). With this protocol, the vaccination of a puppy begins at the age of 6-7 weeks and can include up to 5 vaccines in the first 6 months of the animal’s life. After a booster at 26 weeks, the following boosters for “essential vaccinations” will be necessary from the age of 3 years.
“Non-core” vaccines produce shorter-lasting immunity and generally need to be renewed every year.
An adult dog is therefore vaccinated annually, but the components of the vaccinations it receives may vary each year. Your veterinarian will be best able to offer you a vaccination protocol adapted to your dog according to your geographical location and the lifestyle of your animal.
A particular mention is essential for vaccination against canine rabies. It is strongly recommended to have your pet vaccinated against rabies, even if it is not a legal obligation. You will be asked for proof of this vaccination when crossing borders.
For the good balance of your puppy, early socialization is essential. A well-respected vaccination protocol will allow you to put it in contact with other puppies and other adults (themselves in perfect health and completely vaccinated) in order to ensure this good socialization.
