Hi Jill ... I had one year old Porter vaccinated against lepto in May due to the fact we live in a rural area with a pond and a creek inhabited by the lepto-carrying beaver. After receiving the first booster (lepto only - his annual vacc's aren't due til August) he had an allergic reaction. Hot, swollen gums, ears, skin etc. He was chewing at his feet until they were bleeding. It took 3+ weeks to get over it (10 days on prednisone)... now, when taking Porter & his GSD brother Kief (8 months) for runs thru the fields (by the creek and pond) we leash them until we've passed the creek and always carry fresh water for them and a collapsible bowl. The vet at the company that manufactures the vaccine stated Porter's reaction very common in Berners and believes that Porter may have already been exposed to lepto and was immune ... All is well now, and the drug manufacturer is refunding all of our money including the cost of the vaccine and all subsequent vet visits and treatments. This is just my experience with the vaccine and although Porter's reaction is not classified as severe, in my books anything that causes that much distress to my dog is severe.
After discussions with my vet we have decided that my dogs will receive annual vaccines (distemper, parvo, etc.) and receives a rabies vaccine bi-annually. Just my experience ... --- J Evans <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hi everyone. > > I recently took Indie (will be 7 in Sept) for a > check up and to check > titers. He has plenty of immunity against > everything, but > Leptospirosis. My inclination is to not vaccinate > for Lepto, because there > is a fairly low incidence in our area, according to > a Vet who specializes > in infectious diseases. The Vet said that the Vet > school (at Purdue) does > recommend the vaccination, especially for dogs who > frequent ponds and rural > areas where the disease is more prevalent. (that's > daily, for us = where > we live). My dog's personal Vet also > thinks Indie should get the vax. The newer 4 way Vac > which covers 2 strains > that rarely occur and 2 newer strains, was > recommended. It has a low > incidence of side effects/problems associated with > it (1 in 1000), but my > hesitation is partly due to the information that > Berners, Poodles, Afgans > and ?, are more susceptible to auto-immune related > problems which can be > associated with vaccines. Because of that and > because our older girl, > Trace, died not long after receiving a lepto shot, > my emotions are > screaming: DON'T!!! give this vax to an "older" > Bernese. I cannot prove > that Trace's anemia/decline/death was a side effect, > but due to the timing, > I at least wonder. Lepto can cause some serious > problems and some dogs do > die from it - I forget the death rate due to the > disease, itself. > > Help! I would appreciate input from Berner owners > concerning their call on > vaccinating > Berners against lepto. > One other piece of the puzzle that bothers me: In > the past, Indie has had > yearly, routine vaccinations. For about 2 weeks > after that, he has been > 'not himself,' and I would bet the farm it's due to > a reaction to the > vacs. It was always a combo shot, and not just > lepto. > > If you do not have your Berner vaccinated for Lepto, > why and does your dog > receive other routine vaccinations? > To those who titer: do you check Lepto? > Given the info above, would you have Indie > vaccinated for Lepto, if he were > your dog. > > I don't want to spark a vaccination controversy, but > will appreciate > knowing what other Berner owners do, before making a > decision for my dog. > > Thanks, and hugs to your dogs, > Jill with Indie and Gabby > ===== Jennifer Martyn Conn, Ontario, Canada __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? SBC Yahoo! DSL - Now only $29.95 per month! http://sbc.yahoo.com
