Leptospirosis vaccine

[Sally, Echo and Emmi]

Hi!
I have a 9 week old doodle and when I took him for his 2nd puppy shots my vet explained to me that he hasn't given a leptospirosis vaccine in several years as he felt the bad reactions outweighed the benefits of giving the vaccine. He says he hasn't seen a case of lepto in years. We live in southeast Florida in the coastal area (not inland). He says the reactions can be quite bad. Does anyone else have thoughts on this? Also, my friend's vet who is the town just north of us gives dogs a parvo booster every 6 months (no parvo increase in our area). Any thoughts on this also? My vet wants to complete Echo's puppy shots then give the yearly and repeat one more year. Then he wants to do titers from then on. Any comments on this? Thanks so much for any knowledgeable doodle owners out there...and there are many!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

http://www.doodlekisses.com/group/healthandmedicalissues/forum/topi...

Sally, I recently asked about lepto vaccinations here; the link is above.
There is a also an ongoing discussion in the Health & Medical issues group on the vaccination/titer issues.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Ann, my vet's office is suddenly seeing a tremendous increase in cases of leptospirosis in my area (Chicago suburbs). Where they didn't see one case from year to year, they have had 6 cases in the past several months...small house dogs. The new vaccines are supposedly safer. There is more info in the discussion link I posted above.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

This link from a Canadian article may also be of interest to you.

http://www.wormsandgermsblog.com/2008/07/articles/animals/dogs/shou...

[Adina P]

the title of that blog makes me want to stay away-- LOL-- the more I know about germs and worms the more I'm afraid to touch anything :-O -- I think it's better that I close my eyes while reading that article.

[Adina P]

I think that if your vet does not recommend it, skip it. I say that because of the vets here do recommend it because apparently there are cases of lepto on occasion.

[Sally, Echo and Emmi]

Thanks for all the responses and I did read the other thread. I am kind of right back to the beginning as 1 vet in the town north of me is giving it to his patients but my vet still isn't as he says he hasn't sen a case in 10 years. He really disliked the side effects of the vaccine and doesn't not have any experience with the new vaccine. If I tell him I want it I'm sure he will get and give it but I don't want to be the one that gives my new pup side effects. One thing I don't know is if this vaccine has to be given in puppy shots or can it be given later as a liitle older dog if cases are being dignosed in our area? Thanks for any ciomments back!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Sally, I don't think it's ever a good idea to give several different vaccines at the same time, especially to a puppy. That's what they call "vaccination cocktails", and a lot of people blame them for everything from neurological problems to allergies (immune system defiencies).
The main way dogs get lepto is from drinking contaminated water, where other wild animals may have urinated. The spring run-off from melting ice & snow is a big problem. In some areas, deer are the worst risk, in other areas, it's beaver, etc. If you can make sure your puppy doesn't come into contact with ANY outside water: ponds, streams, rivers, etc., and even puddles in your yard or neighborhood, you can avoid it. I think we all have to weigh the likelihood of our particular dogs getting any given disease against the risks of optional innoculations, guided by a vet we trust.

[Sally, Echo and Emmi]

Thank you Karen. Your comments are always well thought out with a wealth of information. I appreciate them. You may have read in some of my earlier posts that I lost a very beloved black lab last Memorial weekend to lymphoma, Magic. She had just turned 8 and I was devastated. Since then I have done so much reading about food and vaccines that it can make your head spin!! The food thing I have a pretty good handle on now (with some help from DK!) but the vaccine thing is not a foregone conclusion in my mind. My motto is leaning towards less is more but I don't want to lose this precious pup because of my fear and indecision. My friend whose vet is in the next town over just gave her puppy the new Leptovax vaccine and the puppy did fine but her older dog had a terrible reaction and his face swelled up like a basketball she said. This was with the new, safer vaccine. Her vet justified it by saying he is seeing a ton of Lepto (the general public has not heard this) whereas my vet says he hasn't seen a case in 10 years if ever, he can't even recall one! I do know my vet did his training for years at the emergency vet hospital in my area so he has seen alot. I am a nurse so I can be pretty jaded when it comes to the medical field. I do know her vet recommends yearly teeth cleaning for ALL dogs and gives parvo twice a year and again my vet says parvo once a year as he hasn't seen a case around here in a long time. So I don't know how much her vet recommends due to issues other than only the well being of his animal patients. Just as in the human medical field there are doctors that do things for the absolute well being for the patients and then there are doctors who have big, beautiful offices that have huge rents to pay. It is sad but very true. I just don't want my puppy paying for my issues of indecision! He is such a love and i am madly in love! Thanks Karen and Jack!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You're so welcome, Sally, and thank you for the nice words! I too have learned so much here, it's nice to "pass it on"! We are all in this together!