Truth4Dogs

Some veterinarians are avid readers of veterinary journals and attend the seminars of top experts. They’re always up to date on the latest scientific findings regarding vaccination.

Others, not so much.

Would you know if your vet vaccinated appropriately, according to the latest suggested protocols? Would you know if your vet took every precaution to avoid unnecessary shots and adverse reactions?  Here’s how to find out.

Pictured: Sasha, whose death after over-vaccination prompted activism

Dangerous Vaccination Practices

Your dog’s health is at risk if your vet:

• Has ever failed, prior to vaccinating, to evaluate your dog’s current health … or failed to ask if your dog has ever reacted badly to shots … or failed to determine your dog’s age and current lifestyle … or failed to check his or her file … or failed to ask if your dog has been vaccinated elsewhere in the past three years.
• Even once vaccinated your dog without your express consent.
• Even once vaccinated without fully explaining the risks, benefits and alternatives to vaccinating. (Learn your vet’s Liability Related to Vaccination.)
• Vaccinates your adult dog yearly with combo shots or against parvovirus and distemper.
• Argues if you question the need for a shot or ask about titer testing instead of vaccination.

Read more »

Despite the huge tumor on his mouth, this sweet dog was given 7 shots 4 weeks before this photo was taken. The tumor grew 10-15% after the shots."

Most knowledgeable vets agree that certain animals should NOT be vaccinated (absent proven, urgent need such as inevitable exposure to a life-threatening disease). These  include, but aren’t limited to, pets with autoimmune disease … pets undergoing chemo, radiation or surgery (even dental cleaning or neutering) … pets with autoimmune disease, cancer, severe allergies and skin diseases … pets fighting an illness or parasites … pets stressed from shipment or a move to a new home … malnourished pets … and dying housebound pets.  Assaulting the immune systems  of these animals with vaccination has been likened to throwing gas on a raging fire.

Vaccination is big business and an old habit.  Dogs and cats need an advocate with common sense (and a strong backbone) to stand up for their pets. That means you!

So why shouldn’t you vaccinate a sick, stressed or geriatric pet? For one thing, the pet may develop adverse reactions ranging from fever to seizures to autoimmune disease to anaphylactic shock  and even death. (Click this link  to see other possible adverse reactions.) Furthermore, shots administered to an unhealthy animal may fail to provide immunity while giving you the false security that your dog is protected.  On top of that, Read more »

When vaccinating our dogs, most of us rely on our vets, trusting that their advice is up-to-date and not biased by economic or political concerns.  Unfortunately,  unless vets stay current on veterinary journal reading (no easy task) … and actually assimilate new findings … and decide to forgo significant vaccination income, their advice may lag well behind many years behind what experts now advocate.

Vaccination is a serious medical procedure with the potential for adversely affecting health, both in the short and long term. Experts now advise us to vaccinate each dog according to his or her individual needs.  But  how do you cut back without endangering your dog’s health?  Here are 10 ways to eliminate unnecessary shots while actually improving pet health.

1. Always consider locale, lifestyle, risk and vaccine effectiveness. Bordetella (kennel cough) is for dogs in poorly-ventilated close quarters (like kennels), not for pets sometimes playing with others. Leptospirosis is a disease of wetlands and woodlands, and the vaccine may not protect against the actual disease in your area. Lyme is only for dogs in areas with Lyme disease. Furthermore, each of these vaccines has dangerous side effects and their efficacy is questionable. Don’t give them without proven need and benefit.

2. Eliminate vaccines on the “not recommended” list of the American Hospital Association’s Canine Vaccine Task Force as well as most veterinary organizations and schools. These include Giardia and Coronavirus (found in many combination shots).

3. Say no! to combination shots. Combo shots (called names like DHLPPC) assault your dog’s immune system with five or seven vaccines at once. Given for (false) economy and convenience rather than health or safety, combination shots are linked to autoimmune disease and other major health problems. Also, they invariably contain unnecessary and even dangerous vaccines.

4. Stop vaccinating against diseases for which your dog may already have immunity. Read more »

The cost of vet care for 2009 is estimated at $12.2 billion, up $1.1 billion from last year. With the economy still ailing, jobs still disappearing and the stock market way down from previous highs, many of us are postponing or foregoing dog care because we can’t afford treatment. It’s time — past time! — to cut out those unnecessary products and services too many pet parents think are essential — but may actually be harmful. Here are some cost-saving ideas that will also make your dog healthier:

1. STOP VACCINATING UNNECESSARILY! No more vaccinating against diseases your dog is unlikely to catch and against diseases to which your dog is already immune. Not only is unnecessary vaccination a huge waste of time and money, the resulting adverse health consequences can ruin doggy health and cost you a fortune in vet bills down the line. Watch our video Vaccinating Dogs for suggestions, and read or reread “Rethinking Vaccination” in our book, Scared Poopless. Also, read our blog article on titer testing. (Click here.) This simple blood test is especially important to prevent over-vaccinating puppies.

2. FEED QUALITY FOOD. Read more »

Some things we know for sure, then we find out we were dead wrong. This describes my journey through the minefield of vaccination for dogs. Much of this applies to cats, too.

My journey began with, “Let’s vaccinate puppies and dogs against every disease possible — to keep them safe.” After one year of research (now grown to five) and interviews with top pet immunology experts, I evolved to, “Let’s vaccinate only against life-threatening diseases that a dog, as a unique individual, is likely to contract given the dog’s lifestyle, age and locale, and to which he or she does not already have immunity. This sounds like common sense, doesn’t it? It is the same journey taken by every vet school in North America, and by the major vet organizations: the American Animal Hospital Association, the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association.

It is not, unfortunately, the journey taken by way too many veterinary practices, Read more »