Vaccinations

Your puppy’s health is your responsibility. They depend on you for their food, shelter, and medical needs. It’s important that you understand what your he/she needs to maintain optimal health and when.

Of course, I am not a veterinarian and advise that you heed your vet’s advice above what’s here. This is just meant to be a guideline. The things we are going to touch on are vaccinations, preventatives (heartworm, flea, & tick), spay and neuter, and diet and exercise.

There are many contagious diseases in the dog world that can inflict serious problems and even death. Luckily, most can be easily prevented with vaccinations. We’re going to go over some of the recommended vaccinations that your puppy can receive as well as a few optional ones depending on lifestyle, breed, and veterinarian recommendations.

Distemper - This airborne disease that dogs, raccoons, skunks, and other animals suffer from attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal, and nervous system of the infected animal. Symptoms include fever, coughing, vomiting, diarrhea, seizures, twitching, paralysis, discharge from the eyes and nose, and, often, death.

There is no cure for this tragic disease and treatment consists of supportive care.

Leptospirosis - This disease is caused by bacteria and can be found worldwide. Some dogs may show no symptoms at all, while others can have fever, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, loss of appetite, weakness and lethargy, stiffness, jaundice, muscle pain, infertility, and kidney failure (with or without liver failure). It can be treated but is also preventable with a vaccination.

Bordetella bronchiseptica - Otherwise known as “Kennel Cough”, this highly infectious bacterium causes severe fits of coughing, whooping, vomiting, and, in rare cases, seizures and death.

This vaccination is especially important if you plan to board your puppy, attend training classes, or use a puppy daycare.

Hepatitis - Unrelated to the human form of hepatitis, the canine version of this highly contagious viral infection affects the liver, kidneys, spleen, lungs and eyes of the infected dog. Symptoms range from a slight fever and congestion of the mucous membranes to vomiting, jaundice, stomach enlargement, and pain around the liver. 

There is no known cure, however, symptoms can be treated for comfort.

Coronavirus - Not related to the same virus that causes COVID-19, Canine Coronavirus usually affects dogs’ gastrointestinal systems and, sometimes, respiratory. There are no drugs that kill coronaviruses in dogs, however, doctors can keep a dog hydrated, warm, and comfortable as they fight the disease.

Parvovirus - Parvo is highly contagious and all dogs are susceptible, though it is most dangerous  to puppies less than four months old and unvaccinated dogs. Affected dogs will have a loss of appetite, vomiting, fever, and often severe, bloody diarrhea as this virus attacks the dog’s gastrointestinal system. Dehydration can come on very quickly and kill a dog within 48-72 hours so prompt veterinary attention is crucial.

There is no cure, so it is crucial to ease secondary symptoms and keep the dog hydrated while it fights the disease.

Rabies - Most states require rabies vaccinations to prevent this viral disease that affects many mammals by invading the central nervous system causing anxiety, hallucinations, headaches, excessive drooling, fear of water, paralysis, and death. 

Parainfluenza - This is one of the several viruses that can contribute to Kennel Cough.

Now that you know what the different vaccinations help to prevent, the next thing to understand is the vaccination schedule. There is no one shot that prevents all these diseases and not every vaccination is safe for young puppies. Many factors, such as which country you live in and your dog’s individual risk factors come into play as well. Some dogs don’t need every vaccine and what you choose for your puppy should be a decision made between you and your vet.

There are set guidelines for when puppies should receive each vaccination.

Download a Vaccination Schedule here.

You may have heard that you can’t take your puppy places until he/she is fully vaccinated. It is true that some caution needs to be taken with an unvaccinated puppy, however, there are more factors to be considered than simply preventing disease.

Socialization and training is very important between 9 - 14 weeks. During these crucial weeks while they are learning about their world, their reactions to different situations can be shaped to remain positive (or negative) for the rest of their life. A puppy that is too sheltered will possibly forever fear the outside world.

So how does a person successfully balance socialization with health for their puppy? Well, the first step is understanding how vaccinations work.

As you can see from the above chart, a puppy will receive multiple injections of the same type of vaccine. This is because the initial vaccination primes the immune system while subsequent shots boosts the immune system to fight against that disease. This is why they are called boosters.

However, the puppy still receives protection from antibodies found in their mothers milk which actually interferes with the effectiveness of the vaccination. Maternal antibodies decrease at different rates and there is no way of knowing when they decrease enough to allow the vaccine to work.

That is why boosters are important for covering all the bases when it comes to preventing diseases in your puppy.

Now, does this mean your puppy should be kept in a sterile environment until they are 16 weeks old and fully vaccinated? No! Remember, socialization is vitally important at this age as well.

The key is to avoid other dogs and areas where other dogs frequent, especially if there are sick dogs such as the veterinary hospital or unvaccinated dogs. 

• Stay away from dog parks and pet stores as you have no way of knowing if all the dogs are vaccinated and disease free.

• Carry your puppy in and out of the veterinarian’s office as sick dogs can contaminate the ground, floors, furniture, and rest areas.

• Don’t let your puppy sniff or step in animal feces, as this can contain and spread disease.

• Make sure other household pets are vaccinated.

• If your neighbors or family members have dogs, ask if they are vaccinated and ask them to wash their hands and remove their shoes when visiting your house.

There are many things you can do to help socialize your puppy during the unvaccinated weeks. We recommend taking advantage of safe socialization opportunities as much as possible. Here are some safe scenarios to optimize socialization and minimize the threat of disease:

Play dates and visits from other fully vaccinated dogs that belong to your friends and family are ok. The only caution I would say here is that if the dog had just been to the dog park, a quick wash down of their feet may be a good idea.

Since most puppy training classes require up to date vaccinations, it’s usually safe to take your puppy. Puppies love to interact and play with each other and it’s great for training.

You may also go to places and interact with people where no other dogs are present. The hardware store is one example of  a place that should be safe for your puppy to explore.

Of course, every socialization interaction should be paired with lots of praise and treats to make sure the puppy views it positively for the rest of its life.