Vaccinations are a way to protect your pet from serious infectious diseases.

It is only worth vaccinating your pet against diseases which can cause serious illness or death.  We don't vaccinate pets against mild illnesses from which most animals recover well without treatment.

The vaccines your pet needs varies depending on their lifestyle and environment.  For example and outdoor cat which can get into fights with other cats needs vaccination against diseases which may not be relevant to an indoor cat which only sees other cats when boarding at catteries.  Close consultation with your vet will help you determine the best vaccination schedule for your pet.  Remember to advise your vet if your pet's lifstyle and environment change, such as moving from an apartment to a house with a yard (and the cat going outside), or moving to an area with a lot of wildlife (which can carry other diseases.

Dog Vaccinations

Core Vaccinations

All dogs should be vaccinated against Distemper, Parvovirus, Hepatitis and Kennel Cough (P5 Vaccine) we recommend vaccination at 6 weeks and a booster at 12 weeks. Keep your dog out of public areas until the second vaccine has been given.

Recommended vaccinations for rural, hunting or rat-exposed dogs

Leptospirosis and Tetanus are deadly diseases which are very difficult to treat.  We see several cases of each every year, sometimes many more.  Unfortunately treatment is difficult and many animals die even when treated.  For this reason vaccination of at-risk dogs is the best protection.  We recommend vaccination of at-risk dogs at 12 weeks and a booster at 16 weeks.

Leptospirosis

Leptospirosis is a deadly bacterial infection carried by rats, wildlife, pigs and other animals.  It is often spready by urine contaminated water, so is more common during the wet season and in areas where there is standing water.

Leptospirosis vaccination is recommended if your dog lives, plays or hunts near cane, bush, creeks or comes into contact contact with wildlife, rats or urine.

Leptospirosis can also affect humans and many people are hospitalised or die of "Lepto" or "Wheal's disease" annually in FNQ.

A yearly booster is required to maintain their immunity and includes a general health check.

Tetanus

Tetanus results from contaminated wounds: the tetanus bacteria grows in the wound and produces a toxin which causes a stiff, rigid paralysis (Tetany), which is often fatal.

Tetanus vaccination is recommended if your dog lives, plays or hunts on farms, bush or around horses.

Tetanus is boosted after 1 year then every 5 years after that.

Cat Vaccination

Core Vaccination

All cats should be vaccinated against Feline Enteritis and the three organisms that cause Cat Flu, Feline Rhinotracheitis virus, Calicivirus and Chlamydia Psittaci.  We recommend vaccination at 8 weeks and repeat at 12 weeks, then annual boosters thereafter.

Outdoor Cat Vaccination

Outdoor cats must also be vaccinated against Feline AIDS (FIV) and Feline Leukemia (FeLV).  These  viruses are transmitted by grooming, fighting and mating, and cause severe disease and early death.  These infections are common in outdoor cats (around one third of sick, outdoor cats we test are positive to one or both viruses)

If your cat has not been vaccinated for Feline AIDS and Leukemia a blood test may be required, particularly if it has had fight wounds like abscesses.

Vaccination frequency

Annual vaccination is essential for for outdoor cats and cats which board.

Currently all Cat vaccines are registered for annual use and it is not possible to induce good immunity to Cat flu (Herpes Virus and Calici Virus) using less frequent vaccination.  We use all vaccines according to their registration to ensure safety and efficacy.

There is some controversy about cat vaccination frequency.  A large part of this is due to vaccination site reactions reported in the United States where they use different vaccines including a rabies vaccine.  Australian Vets have not reported a problem with these reactions.  Cairns Vet Clinic has never seen a severe lesion form at the site of vaccination in any of the thousands of cats we have vaccinated.