Vaccinating our Pets- Too Much or Too Little?
A few years ago, getting pets vaccinated at their annual vet exam was a pretty straight forward matter. We would take the pet, the vet would do a quick exam and then he would give him a few shots. Nothing to it and the pet was fine. Welcome to 2010. These days there is controversy surrounding even the simplest of things. Pet vaccinations are no exception. There are many people who have began to question the entire theory behind vaccinations and whether they might actually do more harm than good.
Vaccinations, whether in pets or humans, work along with our body’s own immune system. The vaccination contains small quantities of the virus or bacteria that causes the illness. Sometimes the pathogens are dead and sometimes they are weakened forms of live organisms. The body does its thing by reacting and producing antibodies. Once we have the antibodies in our blood, we are immune or at least better able to fight off that infection. In essence, we make ourselves a little sick so we don’t get very sick later.
Unfortunately these vaccinations can often lead to reactions in humans and animals. These reactions can very often lead to death. Another side effect of regular vaccinations is that they can lead to stronger strains of other common infections. It’s a little like over prescribing antibiotics. Skin allergies, urinary track infections and other normally minor problems can be made worse. Though the makers of the vaccines are quick to say that these reactions are very, very rare, other tests indicate that the numbers may be as high as 1 in 10 animals having problems. Smaller breeds have an even greater incidence of problems due to vaccinations.
The problem is that evidence pointing towards possible problems is still somewhat circumstantial while the evidence of vaccinations’ effectiveness is well proven. Therefore it is the law in most jurisdictions that pets be vaccinated against communicable diseases whether there is a threat or not. Many of the diseases the vaccines prevent are untreatable if the animal contracts them and they will die. Considering this, and the relatively minor problems associated with vaccinations, at this time it’s still worth the risk.
One thing that is happening as a response to the potential problems is that vaccination schedules are being revised. Animals aren’t required to get every vaccine every year. Instead, a three year schedule is becoming common. Less frequency means less chance of problems. If you are really determined to save your pet from a vaccination, the animal can be checked for antibodies of particular diseases. If the antibodies are still present, then the pet doesn’t need the vaccine. This is of course a little expensive.
All drugs have potential side effects, vaccines included. But the diseases they prevent are too serious to entirely give up the vaccinations. Though we don’t want to gamble with our dog’s lives, the odds are still in favor of the vaccines.