Pet Vaccines: How and Why to Keep Them To a Minimum

Pet Health: Dog and Cat Vaccines

According to Dr. Jodie Gruenstern, a holistic veterinarian who practices in Muskego, Wisconsin and a Veterinary Advisor to AllNaturalPetHealth.com, pet vaccines have been associated with vomiting, diarrhea, fevers, rashes, anaphylaxis, vaccine site tumors, seizures and immune mediated disorders. Some of these side effects are minor and temporary, but others can be very serious:

- Anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis is an unusual hypersensitivity and reaction, also known as anaphylactic shock. If not treated quickly, anaphylaxis can cause rapid and devastating consequences, up to and including the death of your pet.

- Immune mediated disorders. There is increasing evidence that pet vaccinations may be harmful to your pet's immune system.

- Vaccine site tumors - tumors which appear at the site where pet vaccines were administered.

- Seizures. You may have never felt completely helpless until you've watched your dog suffer a seizure. Unfortunately, seizures can be a side effect of pet vaccinations.

According to Dr. Gruenstern, pet owners should also ask questions and exercise caution before consenting to the vaccination of a pet with allergies, diabetes, otitis, hypothyroidism, epilepsy, hyperadrenocorticism, kidney disease, cancer or other disease.

More and more of us who are entrusted with caring for a pet are becoming reluctant to simply say "Go ahead" when the veterinarian suggests a vaccine or set of vaccines.

Now you may want to ask instead, "Do you do titres?"

A titre (also sometimes spelled titer) is a blood test which measures the immune response to an antigen exposure. The number measured is an antibody level present at different titration or dilution levels of the blood. The antigen that the body has been exposed to in order to stimulate the immune response could have been present in a vaccination or the disease itself. If antibody levels are present in highly diluted blood, then that's a high titre. A high titre level may indicate lots of exposure, lots of protection or perhaps long-lasting immunity. The titre level is one indicator of the body's immune response to an antigenic stimulation.

Translation: A simple blood test (titre) may be able to tell you your pet's current level of immunity to a particular antigen (type of illness), so you can decide if you want to give your pet another vaccine for it or not. In many cases, using titres, pet owners can protect their pets -- and their wallets -- from unnecessary vaccinations and the side effects that may be associated with them.

Obviously there are some vaccinations that are required by law. A titre will do nothing to change legal requirements to administer certain vaccinations, such as rabies vaccinations.

Not all veterinarians perform titres. Most holistic veterinarians do perform them. A veterinarian who is experienced with utilizing titre information can provide you with guidance as to when to perform a titre and then, based on that result, whether or not to boost.

Dr. Jodie Gruenstern, DVM, CVA has been practicing veterinary medicine since 1987. She is a certified veterinary acupuncturist, food therapist by the Chi Institute and includes essential oils as well as many other natural treatments at Animal Doctor, Inc., a holistic veterinary practice in Muskego, Wisconsin. Dr. Gruenstern is also a Veterinarian Advisor to AllNaturalPetHealth.com.

Helpful links:

Books about pet vaccines.
Dr. Gruenstern's complete article on Titres.
Article: Pet Vaccines