Vaccination and Prevenative Medicine Information

Both puppies and kittens get protection to many diseases from their mothers in utero. However, this protection only lasts a limited amount of time, usually between 5- 12 weeks. For this reason, we start vaccinations at 6 weeks of age and continue with the "booster series" until the baby is 15 - 17 weeks old. A puppy or kitten must be at least 12 weeks of age to get a Rabies vaccination. One set of vaccinations is not enough to protect your pet from disease, and it is extremely important to complete the booster series at the appropriate times to give your new family member the most protection possible. Many of the deadly diseases that we see, like Parvo Virus or Distemper,  are preventable with correct vaccinations. Adult vaccinations boosters are needed at different time intervals depending on the disease, the type of dog, and whether the dog is a hunting dog, a show dog, a therapy dog, or sits inside a condo and never goes outside. The veterinarian can discuss what is the best proticol for you and your pet at the time of your visit.

Many times your pet gets sick from something that could have been prevented or avoided. Infectious disease, parasites, and injury from vehicular trauma are the most common problems we see in young dogs.

Intestinal, skin, and blood parasites cause many of the diseases we have to fight. Roundworms, hookworms, whip worms, and tapeworms all cause varying degrees of gastro-intestinal symptoms in your pet ranging from dull hair coat, diarrhea, vomiting, to life threatening anemia. Fleas carry tapeworms and also drink a large amount of blood and are responsible for many of the itching and hairloss problems we see in both dogs and cats. Ticks carry several life threatening diseases such as Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Erhlicia, Lyme's Disease and Cyatauzoanosis (Bobcat Fever). Mosquitos carry many diseases as well, including heartworm disease and West Niles Disease. We can treat these diseases, but try desparately to prevent them with different medications. It is much easier to prevent a life threatening disease than to treat the result of a severe blood infection.