Our cat is 2 1/2 yrs old, she is a pedigree and had her first jab and the booster around 8 and 12 weeks old (Feb 2005).  Last year we did not go away so she didn't need to go to a cattery and unfortunately we forgot to get her yearly booster.  After reading on here about dog vaccinations I wasn't too worried as she is a house cat and I have read the many opinions for and against.

This year we are going away so today I went to the vet's to enquire about a booster and they said because she missed one last year she needs a whole new course!!  This surprised me as I thought she would just need another booster.  So she needs the first jab again and a booster 2 weeks later at a whopping cost of £45.

Does anyone on here know if I have been told the correct information?

Many thanks
Lozi

Yes, that's correct I'm afraid.

Why? surely a booster is a booster, and the only reason for two jabs in kittens and pups is to ensure one takes due to maternal antibodies, so why would they need two again.

I was told by a chap from intervet when talking about canine boosters that tis was in fact not needed.

Hi.....your vet is correct, she will need to have the full course again. It's really important to keep cats up to date with their boosters, in case you need to place them in a cattery for holidays etc.... I show my cats & we have to double check they are up to date with their booster, otherwise they would be refused entry on the show day. I know boarding kennels & catteries are really strict with all this now, due to current regulations. As far as i know, there is a time scale that you can be late having a booster done, but if you miss it altogether then you have to start again, it's a pain i know!       

I wonder if your vet is aware of the feline titre test offered by Glasgow University ?

Better check with the cattery as well that they would accept this and for how long they would regard the result, if good, as evidence of continuing protection.

It's not correct for dogs so I'd definitley check it out for your cat - I haven't read up that much on felines but canines don't need a whole course if a booster is missed!

Edited to say:
Dogs can have a titre test to establish whether a booster is necessary and as Moonmaiden says, it's available for cats too!

I used to have my cats(when I had them)titre tested the same way I do my dogs, they never needed a booster & all lived to at least 19 years old & weren't indoor cats either

Indoor cats actually need vaccinations MORE than outdoor ones as they will not have the same natural immunity. :) I think in this case though the crunch question is definitely whether a boarding cattery will accept titre testing as proof.

I would also check that the cattery are quite clear that their insurance will accept it.

But did your cats go into a cattery, MM? I think that's the relevant point here.

Yes they did & they accepted the titre test

The vets information is correct and you would also have to check with your own insurance if you have it to see if they would also accept the other test ours won't.

>It's not correct for dogs so I'd definitley check it out for your cat - I haven't read up that much on felines but canines don't need a whole course if a booster is missed!

yes they do, my mums dog has just had to have hers done all over again

No, it's not necessary but some vets recommend the full course again if a dog's vac has expired.  There was a recent interesting thread about it.

http://www.champdogsforum.co.uk/board/topic/95897.html

Many thanks to you all for you prompt replies.

We have an appt at the vets today for the first jab, (not going away until later in the year).

I really appreciate everyones help.  I may consider the titre tests in the future for the cat and the dog.

Lozi

Lozi
Please check that he needs 2, dogs do not need 2 shots, I'd be surprised if cats do.
Ask the vaccine manufacturers - don't pump him or her up with chemicals he/she doesn't need!
I feel really strongly about this - can't you tell?
Maria :)

Not wishing to spark another debate but I always think it's a shame that owners often have to base their decision re vaccinations and boosters on factors other than the health and well-being of their pets - e.g. kennel/cattery requirements, insurance etc.

I've started a few cats again (including a PKD positive one) when a booster has been missed either due to forgetting or having kittens, and as you cannot show unless you have an up to date vaccination (12 months) it's happened quite a few times. Never had a problem.

Up to date vaccination certificates for dogs are recognised with only one shot and not the complete course.  I would have thought it would be the same for cats - as I say I don't know this for sure about cats, but if I had cats now then I'd have to find out rather than blindly boostering away! 

I've had several calls at work from boarding kennel staff when clients have forgotten to take their pets' vaccination certificate, to confirm that the medical records say that the animal received a booster within the last 12 months.

animal received a booster within the last 12 months.

And we all know that parvo/distemper is every 3 years

And kennels will take a letter from the vet confirming titre test - for dogs

>And we all know that parvo/distemper is every 3 years

The manufacturers won't guarantee immunity beyond 3 years and the communications in the practice recommend boosters every 2 years to be on the safe side, to avoid owners leaving it a bit late and returning after three years.

>And kennels will take a letter from the vet confirming titre test - for dogs

Some kennels - not all.

The manufacturers won't guarantee immunity beyond 3 years and the communications in the practice recommend boosters every 2 years to be on the safe side, to avoid owners leaving it a bit late and returning after three years

But they do guarantee immunity for 3 years, so why some vet recommends every year or every two years is just wrong!

And yes it is some kennels and not all that will take a letter confirming titre test which is a pity and shows a lot more educating needs to be done.  I guess if we all boycotted kennels that insisted on vaccine certificates and not titre results then things would change - eventually.

>so why some vet recommends every year or every two years is just wrong

It's very simple. :) Sometimes people can't make an appointment at the correct time when their animal's booster is due (holiday or illness (theirs or their pets) for example) and if it had already been three years since the last one this would take them beyond the manufacturer's guarantee period and would then - according to the manufacturers themselves - require a restart.

according to the manufacturers themselves - require a restart.

Both Internet and Virbac have recommended that only one vaccine is necessary so when you say a restart I'm presumming you just mean the one vaccine for parvo/distemper.

I've spoken in depth to my current vet who also assures me that one vaccine for parvo / distemper is necessary no matter the time lapse between jabs, and it was also confirmed by a professor at Glasgow university - and I am confident in what he advised. Of course if you are talking about Lepto then 2 shots are required if you choose to have this!

The annual vaccine used to be 15 months to allow for that grace period in case owners were late.  I thought the 3 yr vaccine allowed 39 months in case of people being late?

No. The manufacturers don't guarantee immunity beyond three years.

Well this one for dogs has a licence for 39 months -

http://www.apvma.gov.au/gazette/gazette0506p12.shtml

See 4.VARIATIONS

Product Name: Protech Duramune C3 Canine Distemper, Adenovirus & Parvovirus Live Vaccine
Applicant Name: Fort Dodge Australia Pty Limited
Summary of Use: The changes included the instruction leaflet to indicate that the vaccine are efficacious and protective in six week of age and older dogs for up to thirty-nine months following a second vaccination.
Date of Variation: 4 April 2005
Label Approval No: 51487/0205

Rules are rules and if we want to show we have to follow them, simple as that. I've had hundreds of cats vaccinated without ever a single reaction so am hardly worried about a few extra boosters. :) Never heard anybody complain either. It's a far cry today, when vaccines are available, from when cat showing first started and after each show at least 25 %, up to 50%, of all cats that had taken part would die after the show.

For dog showing vaccination isn't compulsory, so I'm surprised it is for cats:rolleyes:

I've had 5 cats, all lived to an old age except for 2 that were killed in road accidents - they all had their kitten jabs and no other!

Hardly being worried about a few extra boosters seems quite naive to me!

I guess it's becasue I had the experience of a terrible reaction to my first dog that I'm exceptionally careful what I do for Jasper.

Most cat people would say it was FAR more irresponsible to let a cat go outside than to booster it -as you've discovered it isn't safe.(Although as I said earlier, outdoor cats are LESS in need of vaccinations than indoor ones.) I've never lost a cat to a vaccine reaction, but I've never lost one on the road either. :) Vetting in is VERY strict indeed for cat shows which is why you don't risk coming home from a show with something -like at dog shows you can come back home with kennel cough or fleas for instance. Also judges' and stewards'  hands and trolleys are disinfected in between each cat judged. Cats do have MORE serious and fatal diseases than dogs, of course.

Well I was an irresponsible cat owner then as our cats were always let outside and to make matters even worse the ex actually ran over our first cat as he was reversing out of the garage which was pretty horrific.

But seriously, I think the majority of cat owners let their cats outside - is it me or do I just know really odd uncaring cat people?  Although they do seem to love their cats!

If I had to make the choice of vaccinating every year to show a cat or dog then I'd have to put them first and not show.  That is my opinion and I realise others don't feel quite as strongly as I do :D


 

You certainly won't find a responsible breeder selling to a home where the cat will be let out. Of course, the great majority of cats are moggies and hence did NOT originate with responsible breeders. :( Apart from the risk of cars, dogs etc, you also have the very real risks of FIV and similar fatal, incurable diseases that you cannot vaccinate against -but where an infected cat may look healthy for years and continue to spread the virus around the neighbourhood cats.....

You certainly won't find a responsible breeder selling to a home where the cat will be let out.

Well I never knew that !  Sounds like a very limited kind of life to me :rolleyes:
Moggies seem to have done OK despite the risks they face in the big wide world :-D

Pedigree cats have been bred indoors for generations and they do not have the same urges to go out as mogs do. Even so my rescued mogs are perfectly happy to stay indoors as they know it is far nicer than what they had outdoors in the past before being rescued. :)

I have always wondered how people keep cats in?  does this mean never having the back door or a window open.  I would find that very restrictive to my own life let alone the cats???  I couldn't contemplate keeping a ct indoors, but at the same time won't have one because I live on a busy road.

I think I'd liken cats kept indoors to dogs not taken for walks - seems really cruel and un-natural to me - but I know we are not all the same!

I guess it's each to their own and we do what we believe is best :)

I wonder if the new Animal Welfare Act will change things in respect of keeping cats indoors ?

I wonder if the new Animal Welfare Act will change things in respect of keeping cats indoors ?

In a word, no. FAB has been involved in working out the requirements, and they have always made it clear that there are dangers/risk/advantages/disadvantages with both indoor and outdoor and do not have a problem with indoor cats.

It's no stranger than being able to keep a dog from running out the wrong door really, and a cat that is allowed out must still have closed windows upstairs or they'll fall out (had that happen!).  For windows we either have them open on vent or work out a way to fit wire across the entire window in the summer so they can stay open safely.  Back door is never left open no, but could be with a screen door fitted. Those of us that are able to (including me) have large fully enclosed runs, ours opens up from the patio doors and the cats can go outside when the weather is nice. Tellingly though they never even ask until this time of year when it gets warm and sunny. :D

My insurance stipulates that the animal is fully vaccinated and boostered every 12 months otherwise it invalidates the insurance.

So do you have a kennels or is this pet insurance?

If it's pet insurance and you don't vaccinate the insurance wouldn't cover the cost of any disease that could have been covered by the vaccination but pets will be covered for other illnesses or injuries.  Also worth letting them know that the manufacturers stipulate every 3 years not every year.  It's up to you really!

If it's kennel insurance then as I said in an earlier post there is lots of room for education! (I'm talking local councils that set the rules here)!

>Also worth letting them know that the manufacturers stipulate every 3 years not every year

There are still diseases for which it is recommended that an annual vaccination are given.  I am sure that the insurance companies will not pay out for them either if the regime is not followed that is what they mean by fully vaccinated. 

There are still diseases for which it is recommended that an annual vaccination are given.  I am sure that the insurance companies will not pay out for them either if the regime is not followed that is what they mean by fully vaccinated

Think you may mean Lepto ?  Not sure if you noticed my posts but I was discussing parvo/distemper!

Insurance companies will not pay out for an animal that catches a disease it hasn't been vaccinated against it!  Logical really!

Were you?  I thought you were talking about the diseases that insurance companies would expect not to pay out on if not vaccinated to the recommended regime, which of course would include Leptospirosis.

Yes, sorry for the confusion

Insurance companies would not pay out for an illness that could be prevented by vaccine if the animal wasn't vaccinated against that particular disease!

For example,  if a dog had a parvo vax and not a lepto vax - then the dog caught parvo the insurance company would pay out.  If it caught lepto on the other hand it wouldn't pay out becasue it didn't have the recommended vax for lepto!

Yes, I followed your point about that :) 
If I was choosing not to booster, though, I would be inclined to check with the individual insurance company that they will not just negate the entire insurance as they could be also interested in the benefit of an annual check over and as we know insurance companies love a get out clause if there is one :)

I don't know of any insurance company where not vaccinating the insured dog for A particular disease would invalidate the entire insurance cover for all conditions/ diseases.  A conditions where a recommended vacinne was available and not used will not be covered as Maria says.

An annual check-up is not necessary unless it is written into the terms of insurance, again unlikely; to what benefit would it serve the insurance company? They will not cover the costs for preventative treatment.

>to what benefit would it serve the insurance company?

By reducing treatments costs in early detected disorders.