Just wondered what you all thought of this.
I was at the dog groomers on monday. The groomer  is a very experienced West Highland White breeder and shows her dogs. She asked me all sorts of questions one being about annual boosters. I said i had Buddy boosted every year. She showed me a doggy magazine which i forget the name of. The front page was all about annual boosters being a waste of time and money. This article originated from a group of vets so seems legit as they should know what their talking about. (i think the magazine was a March 04' issue) What do you all think. Are our vets just trying to secure a regular income from these boosters or what?
Look forward to your thoughts on this topic. Sorry if it's already been discussed but i don't get on the board much these days.

Maggie.

I don't booster mine. They don't go to kennels and don't meet other dogs.

Previous animals I have had (dogs and cats), I never used to get the boosters done annually and they were all perfectly well. With the cat and dog I have now I get them done every year because they get kennelled when I go on holiday.  If they don't have up to date vaccinations then the kennels won't allow them in.  The vets advise you to keep the jabs up to date but I would hope this was in the interest of the animals and not the size of their bank balance!

CG

I booster mine. The only unboostered dog we ever had died of distemper. Never again.

Since I had a dog die from a booster I have kept well away from them.

I also think that many illnesses and skin conditions are caused by reactions to boosters. 

Everyone must do what they honestly think is best.
:)

Why can I never find anything when I want to :( I was given a copy of a recent magazine article at our training club which said (as far as I can remember) that vets have recognised that there is so much doubt now that vaccinations are necessary each year that they are more or less not going to recommend it. The lepto one is still recommended annually and the others every three years.

I will try to find it.

Daisy

Drat - I can't find it :) Anyway - having talked to my vets recently, I shall only be doing mine every three years (lepto every year) and my kennels will accept this.

Daisy

Look on the Intervet site. It is their vaccine which is now 3 yearly booster.

Not all vets use the Intervet vaccine. Mine doesn't but has said if I want to use that he will get it for me.

Other vets in the area who use it now say a booster this year and then 3 yearly.

I do not booster, my logic is this. My puppies have their puppy jabs which provide the immune system with the neccessary kick start. My dogs socialise at shows, with friends and out on exercise. They mix with wildlife and other pets. This exposure would, I believe, provide reminders to the memory cells and so maintain adequate challenge to the immune system.

I think dogs kept in isolation from others would be at increased risk, as there immune system is not being given a challenge.

Dawn R.

I don't think there is a need for annual boosters but I get my two dogs done because should I need to kennel them (I haven't done so far) then they need to be up to date with the boosters.    I didn't have them done with my first dog and he lived to ten years of age.

  im glad others dont i read the same artical and stopped but felt like a bad person!

I took my dogs the Vet yesterday and I was informed that an annual booster is absolutely necessary in young dogs....NOT using Intervet vaccine.

My dogs was vaccinated using Vanguard when he was a pup, he's now 1 1/2 and I was told the whole process would have to be repeated again...ie first needle, then second, ...then annual boosters???????

This was not 'necessary' in older dogs as they will have had a regular top up of their immune system, and should be immune anyway, but younger dogs will eventually lose the immunity....unless boosted.

With Intervet however, you only need to boost every three years, BUT I was advised to still vaccine annually for Lepto??

They also offered me the chance to do a blood test and send it off to see if they were 'still immune' and whether they needed it?? But this was twice the price of vaccines!!

I'm just after info as I don't understand dogs' immune systems, if they are as humans are....then why do they need to be boosted anyway...? we don't! I thought once vaccinated you were immune but this may  be just me?? haha

I booster every year although this may stretch a few months and rabies booster alternate years.

>if they are as humans are....then why do they need to be boosted anyway...? we don't!

I'm afraid that's not true. It appears that immunity in humans from mumps vaccine, tetanus, smallpox etc only lasts about 10 years (hence the recent mumps outbreak at universities). Those of us old enough to have been smallpox vaccinated as children can assume we have no more immunity than anyone else. :(

Daughter has just had her MMR jab at uni, despite having had mumps as a child and the MMR as a teenager - so my theory that they wouldn't bother with her has gone out of the window :D

Daisy