VACCINATIONS

A “primary” vaccination course consists of two injections, four weeks apart in dogs and three weeks apart in cats. Puppies can be vaccinated from 6 weeks old and kittens from 8 weeks old.

The immunity provided by the “primary” course will not take full effect until about a week after the second injection. We therefore recommend that puppies & kittens are not allowed contact with other non vaccinated animals until about a week after the second injection.

Following “primary” vaccination immunity will last in the region of 12-15months (see below), after which time the animal, if exposed, could contract one of the diseases against which it was vaccinated. Therefore we recommend annual “booster” vaccinations to “top up” your pet’s immunity.

As a practice we are aware of the issue of “over vaccination” whereby pets are sometimes given a booster vaccination against all diseases whether they need it or not. Our policy has been to select a vaccine manufacturer that is working to establish the length of immunity given by a vaccine. As a result your pet will only be vaccinated against diseases for which “top up” booster has been shown to be required, and this will vary from year to year.