Vaccinations - a dilemma

Has anyone got any direct experience of a dog reacting badly to booster vaccinations? No problems with previous vaccinations/boosters?

Was your dog, by any chance, under the weather prior to the booster?

No problem with Amber, they have added anther virus protection to the usual booster and she has to go back to have that boosted on the 30th. But otherwise all ok.

Hi Chris, nope, he was perfectly healthy (in fact he hds never been to the vets for anything except vacs) and had a full vet check before the booster.

That's good to hear Moyra although mine had been fine up until the last time and he is 9

Just gathering info to see if anyone else's dogs have had a similar reaction and what treatment they received, views on further boosters etc.

Hello Chellie, what sort of reaction ?Was a spot pesticide given at the same time..

Hello Chellie, what sort of reaction ? Was a spot pesticide given at the same time.

Hi Meg,

Nope, no spot ons, I don't use any flea treatments and none of the dogs have had any fleas in the lasts even years.

As for reaction, his whole body went into shut down. It all started as loss of appetite, he was still eager for walks and I could get him to eat chicken and rice but soon he wouldn't touch this (he lost 10kg over a fortnight, a quarter of his body weight). Bloods showed elevated liver enzymes that would not react to usual treatment, a raging temperature, impaired kidney function. My vet referred him to a specialist and after nearly a week of tests, biopsies and tube feeding they found IBD but that still did not account for the raised enzymes and all his other symptoms. We were one day away from calling it a day when he started to show tiny improvements. It took 9months for him to be drug free and discharged from the vets.

Both my vet and the specialist vets are of the same mind that he had a severe reaction to his booster but it is impossible to prove so can't say for definite.

Chellie I am sorry to hear about your dog. It is very difficult to prove that a medical condition is vaccine related, I believe there are many instances of reaction which go unverified .
Vaccination is big business and it is not in the interest of of the large pharmaceutical companies to do the research and find a link.

My sons 6yo Springer has a liver condition . The vet thinks he may have had an underlying condition which showed no symptoms and the booster 'tipped the balance'. The symptom after the booster included continuous vomiting and dramatic weight loss. He had numerous tests and scans and was given months to live .He is still with us thanks to a cocktail of medication which he will be on for life. The vet said he must not have any more vaccinations ever.

There is a lot on the internet about dogs with reactions to booster vaccination . Thank goodness things are improving with the introduction of the three year protocol for boosters . I think in time due to pressure from a few people and vets 'who have seen the light' this period will be extended.

It's not just the vaccines that present a problem but the additives like adjuvants the immune system boosters and the preservatives .

The whole subject of vaccination is a difficult one. We do need to protect our dogs from core illness but I think this should be possible with the initial course of vaccine and that boosters should not be necessary and I have argued this with my vet.

It is almost 10 years since this article was posted on Dogsey..
Are we vaccinating too much?
..things have been slow to change.

Hi Moyra is this for L4 the new leptospirosis vaccine wich is give 4 weeks after the first dose.