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標題: Pet owners: Do you vaccinate your dog/cat every year? [打印本頁]

作者: kisstherain 時間: 2009-5-5 16:41 標題: Pet owners: Do you vaccinate your dog/cat every year?

Hi pet owners, have you been taking your dog/cat to the vet annually for check up and vaccines?  Time is up for my 1 year old cat for his annual vaccines but I am not sure if he really need it every year.  According to the reminder card from the vet, he needs:
- Palnleukopenia
- Rhinotracheitis
- Calicivirus
- Rabies
- Leukemia

When I did some googling, it seems a new idea is pets don't need to be vaccinated yearly. Think humans: We are immuned almost for life from the shots we got as babies. So why  our pets need the shots so frequently?

See these articles:
CBC News: http://www.cbc.ca/consumers/market/files/health/petvax/
Holisticat:  http://www.holisticat.com/vaccinations.html
Pet Center: http://www.thepetcenter.com/exa/vacrec.html
and http://www.canine-epilepsy-guardian-angels.com/annual_vacs.htm

The reason why I start to question the need for annual vaccinations is last year, my 9 year old cat devloped a lump at where she received her vaccine. It scared the heck out of me because the lump was hard and big.  Luckily the thing disappeared by itself and not a Vaccine-associated sarcoma (common in cats.. please see
http://www.itsfortheanimals.com/VAS.HTM)

By reading more, it become apparent to me over vaccinating can make our pets sick.  So I think I am going to skip giving my pets shots every year but just annual check ups. I would like to see what are some  pet-owner LYKs' thoughts on this?

作者: its_visa 時間: 2009-5-5 17:11

well.....i get my baby vaccinated for the shots he needs by the time he needs lol
and de-worm and rabies are the most important

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-5 20:47

my vet said for old indoor cats like mine, they don't really need vaccination. I should save up the money and do once every two years blood test instead.

作者: kisstherain 時間: 2009-5-6 10:39

its_visa, so your baby (a Shih Tzu rite?) gets its distemper, bordetella, parvo... etc yearly? That's my concern... do they need those shots that regularly? (like yearly or every 3 years). I

Fabric Little Bear, can you pm me your vet's name? Seems like a vet I'd like to switch my cats to.

Thanks!!

作者: 嘉嘉 時間: 2009-5-8 19:04

yeah, that's what I have been in mind too
I will probably skip the vaccines this year

in fact, I also stopped doing revolution on my dogs. too much chemical entering the body is never a good thing. I rather they live more naturally

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-8 19:09

I don't go to that vet any more. I stop taking my cats to that clinic because the original vet who ran it was retiring. Before I stopped going, so many vets were working there. So every time, I see a different vet. Some were good (like the one who told me about not need vaccines for older cats) but some not so. (like the one who charged me phone consultation without asking if it's ok or not)

作者: Coleslaw 時間: 2009-5-11 09:30

I am wondering the same thing. I had my dog vaccinated last year because she was going to a dog hotel and they required all dogs be vaccinated on everything. I am thinking if I should skip this year..... for dogs I would want to at least keep rabies updated, but rabies is only once every 3 years.

作者: tofu 時間: 2009-5-11 11:44

my dog has vaccine every year, but he has different stuffs every time. because some are good for two years and some are good for three years.

作者: kisstherain 時間: 2009-5-11 16:48

嘉嘉 , is skipping Revolution okay? I thought that is one of the things I can't skip along with the rabies booster since it's getting warm and fleas are active. So all my cats and dogs have started their flea programs already (Dogs eat Program; cats get Revolution). My younger cat hatesss Revolution though. I am not sure if it was the smell or the liquid burns his skin or what... he'd dart around the house for 30 mins every time I applied it on him. Poor thing.

It is hard to find a good vet We had one really good vet for the past 10 years but she passed away. Since then, my pets have been floating away with different vets and I don't like that. Terra Nova Village vet in Richmond is expensive and Lansodowne hospital has at least three different vets (but their website only has info on one).

Sigh, it seems I am bringing my cat back to Lansdowne for annual exam and tell the vet no shots please.

作者: 嘉嘉 時間: 2009-5-11 20:15

嘉嘉 , is skipping Revolution okay? I thought that is one of the things I can't skip along with the rabies booster since it's getting warm and fleas are active. So all my cats and dogs have started t ...
kisstherain 發表於 2009-5-11 17:48

the answer really depends on the vet
some vets say yes some vets say no
some thinks eating raw meat is crazy, some thinks eating raw meat is healthy
so there are all kinds of answers.

I was used to do revolution for my dog, until I was reading about dog/cat death from revolution on the net
if I remember correctly from that website I read, there are about an average of 3000 dog/cat that dies from this "so-called medicine" every year

I then started to question about this thing
and my friend told me, her vet doesn't really suggest revolution (and they don't even sell it in the clinic), the vet would only recommend using advantage (he said it's less hard for the dog) for the dog during the 3 months of summer since that's when the little bugs are active. Now when I think about it more, I would rather take the risk of my dogs being bit instead of slowly poisoning them with the chemical every month. You just can't tell if it is the revolution that is harming our dog's body or not, but when you find out it's just all too late for the body to recover from long term exposure to chemical. I would rather let my dogs live a natural lives instead of relying on those chemicals.

作者: 嘉嘉 時間: 2009-5-11 20:19

speaking of Terra Nova
I didn't really like the vet cuz he kept on telling me Hill's and Purina are good food for dogs

the only reason I took my dog there was because I knew they offer laser surgery, and I was going to get my second dog spayed.

作者: Coleslaw 時間: 2009-5-26 16:20

I just did a little research, a lot of people recommend after 1 year old, that dogs get the DHPP every 3 years and also rabies every 3 years and that is good enough for vaccinations. DHPP includes Distemper, Hepatitis, Parainfluenza, and Parvovirus.

Leptospirosis Lyme and Bordetella are only for certain cases where dogs are in high risk.

You can read more about what these vaccines are for:
http://wbvc.bc.ca/canine-vaccines/ for dogs
http://wbvc.bc.ca/feline-vaccines/ for cats

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-26 19:20

11# 嘉嘉
I have been taking my cats to Terra Nova... ammm... Should I switch vet again.... I really don't feel like switching vet very few years...
esp now one of my cats is tested to have hypothyroid....

作者: daimo 時間: 2009-5-27 09:55

Terra Nova ... Dr. Dear ... IMO he is detail oriented, but he is definitely also a businessman.

if you know what i mean ...

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-27 10:15

Terra Nova ... Dr. Dear ... IMO he is detail oriented, but he is definitely also a businessman.

if you know what i mean ...
daimo 發表於 2009-5-27 09:55 AM

Yes I do.... so who else is good? I really need to find a good vet because my cats are getting older and probably need more attention from a good vet.

作者: kisstherain 時間: 2009-5-27 11:31

I want to know who is good too. What is your opinion on Dr Rana? (Lansdowne) Currently my cats see him for annual exams and my young one was neutered there. Everything is okay. Touch wood nothing major has happened so I don't know how good is he at diagnosing, prescribing medicine etc. My coworker told me her new puppy had skin problem and Rana gave him steriods right away. We are a bit wary if giving steriods to a puppy that early is good or not. Anyway it cured the problem so.
BTW, I took my young cat for his annual exam and I told Rana I dont' want to give him all the shots (refer to the first post of this thread). So Rana took a look and gave him two that he said are boosters and is needed. One is rabies and the other I forgot.
Dr. Dear is still the vet we take our old dogs to though. He seems to be quite good at diagnosing and like daimo said, very detailed, but em, expensive.
I hate it when vets suggest me feed Science Diet or or whatever food they sell there. One of the ingredients list show corn meal and chicken by-product meal as the top 2 ingredients! What kind of junk is that? Yuck!
But why do vets still recommand them? Read this: http://www.4pawsu.com/vet_dogfood.htm

http://www.4pawsu.com/vet_dogfood.htm

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-27 11:48

本帖最後由布小熊於 2009-5-27 11:49 編輯

well, one of my cat has food allergy and the other one just discovered for hypothyroid.
They are on Hill's Hypoallergenic food. (contians duck)
I tried other hypoallergenic food (i.e. California Naturals Duck and peas formula) from pet store and it didn't work for him.
Are there any other brands I can try? They don't like canned food and only eat dry food. I had tried Evo and it didn't work either. (I am wondering if he is allergic to chicken)

Some lyk mentioned about West Boulevard Veterinary Clinic in another post. I wonder how expansive are they compare to Dr. Dear's.

作者: daimo 時間: 2009-5-27 12:19

well, for supplies, definitely go to the East Indians (i.e. Atlas). Same stuff, but for sure much cheaper.

e.g. Advantage anti flea. If you get it from a "white" doc it will be a lot more $ for sure.

作者: Coleslaw 時間: 2009-5-28 03:13

17# 布小熊

My dog used to be on Nutro and I've switched my dog on EVO for a while and her skin allergic reaction is mostly gone. However her stool had been a little bit on the softer side since before and still now... I am considering trying new ones for her.

I recently heard from a friend about this brand called Orijen, it is a canadian brand and available at Tisol. Their "Orijen 6 Fresh Fish" food which can apparently be better than EVO because it has less anti-oxidants. And the 6 Fish formula adds lots of Omega 3, which makes it better than the other formulas. This page is only about the dog food but Orijen also has 6 Fish for cats:
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/showproduct.php?product=1284&cat=8

作者: kisstherain 時間: 2009-5-28 10:39

My cats finished two large bags of Orijen 6 fish formula a while ago. The reason I stopped was reading there was a recall in Australia (http://www.dailykitten.com/chat/topic/11709) and even though that recall affects their food sold in Australia ONLY, upon some futher googlling, I read some feedback on their canned dog food... some people found pieces of metal in it so I am worried about the QA at their plant. I am sad about this because it is high quality, wonderful food, made in Canada, smells really "fishy" (hehe) and my cats loved it. Now they are on Evo but the vet said it is a very rich food and my cats are going to be overweight. So I am mixing Evo with the Innova Light now.

As for special diets, my dogs are hypoallergic and one suffers from pancretitis (so she is recommanded by get to eat Gastro Formulae from Medi Cal). I have been experimenting with better food lately. Need to read the ingredient list and the nutrition list... I can spend a full hour at Tisol or Super Pet examining each bag of food. It's really a hit or miss thing. Luckily Tisol has this box to take food donation for dogs and cats so if it doesn't work you can donate it.
Has anyone read that you cannot feed your pet with the same food for too long otherwise it will develop allergies?

作者: 布小熊 時間: 2009-5-28 10:56

Has anyone read that you cannot feed your pet with the same food for too long otherwise it will develop allergies?kisstherain 發表於 2009-5-28 10:39 AM

May be that's why!! I had been feeding my cats with the same food for years. Until with the food recalls 2 years ago... I started giving them better brands of dry food. But around the same time Mike had a bladder blockage and was treated at the vet. After that.... he has been having dirreah or loose stool and that was "fixed" by Hill's hypoallergenic food. I will continue on the mission of finding the right food for him. We only tried the Natural Balance L.I.D. (Limited Ingredient Diets) Green Pea & Duck again. I read that I need to try it for 2 weeks for the cat to adjust to the new food. Then I will move on to other ones. The current med food he has has duck and potato so I may try to find one with that.

作者: 嘉嘉 時間: 2009-5-31 12:20

I want to know who is good too. What is your opinion on Dr Rana? (Lansdowne) Currently my cats see him for annual exams and my young one was neutered there. Everything is okay. Touch wood nothing majo ...
kisstherain 發表於 2009-5-27 12:31

ya, I don't like those food either (hills/purina/iams/eukanuba/pedigree)
sorry and no offense, they are made of mostly unwanted crap and chemicals......

right now my dogs are on wellness core and orijen 6 fish
stools are good, ears are always clean (I don't really need to wash their ears), and coat is shinny. I am quite happy about these.

I have been thinking about putting my dogs onto a raw diet
just that I am kinda lazy to go out and have some look....yet

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