Sooo..I don't vax my kids - what about our new kitten?
We just got a 11wk old kitten from a friend who works at a vet (he was dropped off there) He has had 2 shots already and is due for his next round on the 9th. I've read some info (not a whole lot really) about vax's for pets, and I know that some last longer and boosters aren't really needed every year, and some can have bad side effects. So I need some info about vax's for pets. he will be a strictly indoor cat, and we have no other pets right now (looking at getting a dog later on when our yard is fenced in)
So anyone knowledgeable about pet vax's and have any info for me?? it is GREATY appreciated!
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Allison mama to:
DH (lol), Chrissy 15, Mikhail 12, Kiera 10, Kivett 8, Aislinn 6, Alannah 3, and fresh from the oven Kian Oliver-Bell 11/15/07
Rabies is fatal and non-treatable...and if your cat bites someone, say a friend of your kiddos or someone at the vets office, you will liable for charges for confining the cat to make sure he/she does not have rabies....the only other choice would be euthanizing. So due to this, and the costs, and the risks of a cat getting rabies from a bat entering your home, I'd recommend a rabies vaccine for sure.
I'd also recommend an FVRCP vaccine for indoor cats. Distemper can live in the soil for years, and you can track it inside...giving your pet an often fatal end, or a hefty vet bill treating it. It also protects against other upper resp. infections. I recommend this one for all cats.
Indoor only means no need for an FELV vaccine...feline leukemia. Another fatal non-treatable disease. If the cat ever goes out, or there is a risk of getting out or being around other cats, I'd recommend this one too.
Those are the only 3 feline vaccines I'd do and recommend. Remember, felines are different than people vaccine wise. They go out, they fight, share saliva, blood, etc. BIG risks there. Indoor only is safer, sure, but you can track in diseases...and unlike most people illnesses/viruses, feline ones cannot be treated, or are often costly to treat if caught on time, like distemper. So I do see it differently from kids...different risks, different viruses.....However I DO believe many pets are over-vaccinated. There are new vaccine recommendations for pets for this very reason. For a kitten, he would need 2-3 FVRCP vaccines, with the last one being at 12-16 weeks or older.....and 1 rabies, good for one year, with the next rabies being good for 3 years. The FVRCP after the kitten ones should be done at 1 year of age, and then every 2-3 years, not the every 1 year as previously recommended.
Let me know if you need more info. (o:
Oh, and make sure kitty was fully wormed.....roundworms can cause blindness in kids, and kittens spread it easily to people....
__________________ "Custom will reconcile people to any atrocity."
George Bernard Shaw
How long can you go with that rabies shot? The news was talking about dogs being every 3 years. There seem to be some confusion with the state and the vets on the years. . It did not of course mention cats.
Kathy, studies show rabies vaccines to last 3 years...but in states with higher incidences of rabies, they often demand every 1, by law. It does vary, but most states are 3 year requirements. (o: I'd not ever take a chance with something that could be transmitted to my kids and is fatal 100% to my pets. Rabies is definetely very important imo.
Well, the only way my cats would get rabies would be from me and the most common pet to human illnesses I've heard about are toxoplasmosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and cat scratch fever - none of which have vaccines.
My dogs get vaxed but I just don't see any reason to put my cats through that year after year when they never, ever set foot outside or have contact with any other animals. They did get vaxed as kittens and for the first few years because we did have foster cats in and out of the house then.
Military wife of a deployed soldier. 
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