Vaccinations and Annual Boosters
Effective vaccinations mean a lot less chance of your pet becoming ill or even dying from a variety of infectious diseases. Your pets should receive all initial vaccinations as well as scheduled boosters to maintain protection over the course of their lives. Discuss the vaccination schedule required for your pet to ensure they maintain immunity from preventable diseases.
Vaccinations for Cats
Panleukopenia or Feline Enteritis which is highly contagious and potentially fatal in cats under a year old. Pregnant cats may have malformed kittens or may lose their litter all together. Cats with panleukopenia experience loss of appetite, depression, vomiting, diarrhoea, severe abdominal pain and potential passing of blood. The virus stays live in the cat’s living areas as well as its system for some time and can potentially infect other cats.
Feline Respiratory Disease or Cat flu is caused by feline herpesvirus or feline calicivirus in most cases. This disease can be contracted by cats of any age. Symptoms include coughing, sneezing, nasal discharge, tongue ulcers, runny eyes and loss of appetite. The death rate is reasonably low but kittens can be ill for an extended period of time and also carry the infection for a long time. If they are stressed, the illness can flare up again quite easily.
Feline Immunodeficiency Virus or Feline AIDS affects the immune system of cats and kittens. This leads to them being susceptible to other illnesses and unable to fight off common ailments. It is usually contracted from being bitten by other cats as the virus is usually present in the saliva. The symptoms vary from none at all to weight loss, eye lesions, poor coat, fever, lethargy, loss of appetite, swollen lymph nodes, diarrhoea, sores in and around the mouth area and chronic infections. This is a common virus in Australia.
Vaccinations for Dogs
Canine Parvovirus which is extremely serious in puppies and senior dogs. The virus causes severe abdominal pain, uncontrolled vomiting and blood in the stool (usually diarrhoea stools). The virus persists in environments where there has been an ill dog and can be carried on clothing and shoes. The entire area needs to be disinfected after there has been an infected dog in the area. Pups can die from severe dehydration even when treated.
Canine Distemper is very contagious and can affect puppies and adult dogs. The most common symptoms are sneezing, coughing, fever, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle tremors, depression, paralysis and fits. Recovery rates are extremely low and survivors may still end up with brain damage.
Canine Hepatitis is very contagious and often fatal for dogs of any age, although it is rare for dogs older than 2 years to contract the illness.Some of the symptoms can include severe abdominal pain, high fever, loss of appetite, depression, vomiting and diarrhoea. Severe cases can result in death in less than 36 hours. Survivors can end up with kidney and liver issues for life. The disease persists and can be passed to other dogs months after contracting the virus.
Canine Cough (aka Kennel Cough) is actually caused by a combination of various infectious diseases including distemper, Bordetella bronchiseptica, canine parainfluenza and canine adenovirus type 2. This is often contracted where groups of animals congregate such as boarding kennels, parks and dog shows. The illness presents with a dry, hacking cough. The cough can persist for a number of weeks and can be distressing, especially in working dogs. The infection can also lead to pneumonia if untreated.
