Are All Vaccinations Necessary?

All states have sets of regulations governing what types of dog vaccinations are required for all canines residing within the particular state. But some of these shots are not in the best interest of the dog’s long term health and have little preventive effect. This has caught the attention of the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) and evidence is beginning to reveal all the required dog vaccinations may not be necessary. Below is information all dog owners need to be aware of concerning this issue.

Puppies DO need vaccinated at six to eight weeks of age as the immunity they inherited from their mother wears off. Then they will require a series of shots during their first year but beyond this age many vets and concerned animal groups are questioning the need for yearly booster shots. These additional dog vaccinations are now very advanced and often given in one shot. This shot has the vaccines in an all in one combination the AAHA has been looking into since 2003. They are seeing results from their studies that show these booster all in one shots may actually be hurting the dog as far as the dogs overall health.

The traditional shots most vets recommend are for Distemper, Canine parvovirus, Rabies, and the Canine pararinfluenza virus and these are continuing to be recommended by the AAHA. What has the AAHA, vets, animal care providers, breeders, and scientists conducting clinical studies are the need for several other vaccinations we now consider to be essential for the safety of our dogs.

These vaccinations have now been classed into two groups: The core shots a canine should have every three to five years. The above listed preventive shots fall into this core grouping. Next are the non-core shots the tests and studies are now revealing are not necessary except in special cases. These would be the vaccinations for Canine adenovirus number 1. This shot is for hepatitis and is already given by the type 2 shot for pararinfluenza your dog receives as a puppy. When the type one vaccine is given on its own later in the dog’s life the studies are concluding the dog is highly likely to sufferer from visual impairment.

The Giardia shot has been shown to have little effect in preventing the dog from contracting the infection.

It is important for your dog’s health to know what shots are and are not needed when dog vaccinations are being administered to your dog. Question your vet whenever vaccinations are scheduled: “Is this really necessary?”

Personally, I hadn’t thought about this before, but I will be asking the questions in the future. What are your opinions about the vaccinations your dog receives? Please leave comments below.