Dhpp Vaccination...do You Get It Annually?

[RedHead]

Just had a question before I call the vet back. They called for our annual vaccine/exam and I checked out last years sheet to see what would be needed. Last year was my first summer with Teague so he got Rabies, Lepto, and DHPP. This year it says both Lepto and DHPP are due again. I know the Lepto vaccine is only supposed to last for one year or less, but what about the DHPP?? I am HIGHLY skeptical that both dogs need this again. I am not against vaccines but also think that they are way over done by some vets. I like my vet now, and he has worked with many greyhounds, but he is old fashioned and I just wondered what the protocol was at other people's vet offices.

 

Thanks!

[Wonder]

Mine was a 3 yr

[KF_in_Georgia]

I get it annually.* I don't think my vet offers the 3-year version.

 

If you plan to board Teague, you might want to check with your boarding facility (or doggie day care) to see what their requirements are. You don't want to be making last-minute boarding arrangements in an emergency and be running off to the vet for shots, especially since some places have a waiting period after the shot before they'll accept the dog.

 

*The exception to my own rule: I haven't gotten it this year for my health-impaired 12-year-old. He goes nowhere (except, ironically, the vets), and he's probably bullet-proof after all these years. I don't want to risk rattling his immune system with the shot. He'll get rabies next year--dog willing--to keep him legal. And he's never boarded.

[TheFullHouse]

Annually here. Rabies we can get the 3 year but the others are yearly.

[JAJ2010]

I just went to the vet (a month ago) and was advised that they have now changed vaccine protocol and it's advised to be given every 3 years.

[Burpdog]

It was changed quite awhile ago to every 3 years -- at least for those 8 yrs old and over.

[tammystroops]

our vet offers the three year one now.

some of my furkids get it some do not

reasons are some are very sensitive to the vaccine.

[brandimom]

When my dog needs any vaccinations I go through my holistic vet and get a titer first. More expensive for a titer but if the dog's system is still high with the vaccine then you do not need to get it and the vet will write you a certificate saying no vaccination needed as the titer is still high.

[Guest Whistle]

We do it every 3 years. That has been the recommendation since 2006.

 

Print this off and take it with you to your vet (pages 4-9 especially). It is also my understanding that they are all one vaccine - there are not separate "one-year" and "three-year" vaccinations.

 

http://www.aahanet.org/PublicDocuments/VaccineGuidelines06Revised.pdf

[Guest KennelMom]

It was changed quite awhile ago to every 3 years -- at least for those 8 yrs old and over.

 

ditto.

[Guest widowcali]

I get mine annually and the rabies is every 3 years. Recently, there has been a major parvo issue in my neck of the woods.

[lothianjavert]

My vet says three years. Rabies is also every three years here, so mine are due this fall for all.

[Guest K9_Lady]

I did titers for Amy last year which was her 3 year due date for them and she was good. This year she had to receive the DHPP.

 

BUT I do Lepto every year. I knew 2 work dogs who had contracted Lepto and they had to retire their dogs. It is very contagious to dogs and humans. The city health department even got involved. City dogs and country dogs could get Lepto and there has been an increase in the Chicago area of dogs contracting it so I won't take a chance.

 

Rabies is 3 year vaccine in Illinois.

[Hubcitypam]

IIRC there isn't a 3 year DHPP as such, just the vaccine protocols recommended have been changed quite a few years ago. We don't go to the doctor for measles vaccinations every year all our lives, so why should our dogs? Because some vets see it as a way to make money and to insure an annual visit.

 

I've been on the 3 year route for DHPP for about a decade with nothing but rabies after 10. My current vet says that is what he does with his own dogs.

[Guest Mom2Shiloh]

You Can get parvo separately.. and that is what I do for dogs at risk; I only get Rabies every 3 years till they're maybe 11. I stop the DHPP after the first couple and do a titre every 3 years. I do not get Lepto vax. I know it's deadly, but the kind we have around here is contracted from a dog smelling the urine of swamp rats. I do not let my dogs sniff near swamps. Lepto vax almost killed my German Shepherd and I'm sure two of my cats developed vaccine induced cancers. Even when I get the Rabies, I get it from my holistic vet so they can have a nosode afterward to lessen the negative effects. I don't board my dogs. If I had to board them, I might consider getting the absolute minimum required just for the occasion but I find it's worth having a petsitter come in.

[WalterWallerson]

Yes I have Walter get it annually but I was told there was not a 3 year vaccine available. I'm always concerned about him and his health and I do wonder if he could go without partcular vaccines because he still has immunity.

[PrairieProf]

We titer annually. Any vet can do it. I started getting Lepto this year after I learned about the risks.

Edited July 10, 2012 by PrairieProf

[gryhnd_adoptee]

When my dog needs any vaccinations I go through my holistic vet and get a titer first. More expensive for a titer but if the dog's system is still high with the vaccine then you do not need to get it and the vet will write you a certificate saying no vaccination needed as the titer is still high.

 

Yep...I do titers too. Their numbers are off the charts still four years post inocculations. Rabies are the law in NY, so that they get every three years without question.

[RedHead]

Thanks so much for your feedback! I do remember reading about a protocol change for 3 years on rabies and some other shots, I just wasn't sure about the DHPP. Since my pups have been vaccinated for this many times already, I am going to opt out of it this year and just do lepto. If the vet doesn't agree, I am about ready to go back to my old vet, even though they are 35 minutes away and this one is one block away. They seem much more "up to date" on things and are also more reasonable costwise.

[cleptogrey]

annually, my vet commented that dhpp and lepto have been on the rise, therefore he's doing annuals. he sees a hell of a lot more dogs than i ever will and knows what's brewing out there.

Edited July 10, 2012 by cleptogrey

[kudzu]

Yes I have Walter get it annually but I was told there was not a 3 year vaccine available. I'm always concerned about him and his health and I do wonder if he could go without partcular vaccines because he still has immunity.

My dog's now get DAP not DHPP. DAP comes in a 3 year vaccine. Even when they did get DHPP we only did it on a 3 year schedule. Started 20 years ago but have been doing it on vet recommendation for 11 years.

 

My seniors will only get the required 3 yr rabies & no other vaccine.

[racindog]

Its my understanding that the AVMA & even the AAHA both recommend a 3 year protocol now and that is what I do as also endorsed by my holistic vet. In fact when the AAHA finally broke down and had to admit it was best it angered so many vets that some withdrew from the organization and lost accredidation for their hospitals. Afterall yearly vaccs are one of their best money makers-EASY money. They just conveniently forget about how needless over vaccination can wreck your dogs immune system and even cause cancer-so proven and without doubt that their own professional organizations had to respond and change to a 3 year protocol as a matter of conscience.Kind of hard to believe they give a hoot about your dog when they are knowingly doing something to it that has been shown to many times cause harm. Once again it seems the mantra to "first do no harm" is forgotten in the quest for easy money.

[JJNg]

Ok...a bit of a soapbox warning...LOL

 

I'd been debating whether to join in on this thread and had initially decided not to, but I just can't help myself when I read comments that are so cynical about the veterinary profession.

 

Vaccination protocols are a topic of controversy within the veterinary community, as well as the general public. It seems that in recent years, in both human and veterinary medicine, vaccines have been blamed for just about every disease possible. The extremists in this controversy seem to believe that vaccines are evil and should never be done at all. I don't think anyone here has said that, but there are lots of interesting opinions out there.

 

In this whole debate, many seem to have lost sight of why we vaccinate in the first place. Maybe this is because in our modern world, many of the diseases that we vaccinate for have become very rare. But they are rare because the vaccines are so effective.

 

Both canine parvovirus and distemper are serious life-threatening diseases. I have colleagues who still remember when outbreaks were common and entire litters died from these diseases before vaccines became available. Now, there are areas in the modern world where parvo and distemper are almost never seen anymore. Where I live and practice, parvo is still fairly common and we also still see distemper now and then. The cases I see are a strong reminder of why vaccines are important.

 

I'll be one of the first to admit that yearly vaccination for most diseases does not make sense and is unnecessary. But I don't believe that the yearly protocols were initially introduced simply as a profit builder. Vaccines were given a 1-year label claim because that's how long the initial studies tested immunity. And now, vets continue to vaccinate every year because that's the way it's always been done. And owners have come to expect vaccines every year because that's what they've always been told should be done. Change is difficult...

 

The issue of business and profit comes into the picture because so many older vets especially have built their practices on the concept of yearly vaccinations. That's the reason that has brought pets into the clinic on a regular basis and is a substantial source of income. One of the big topics in recent years has been trying to shift the focus onto wellness and preventative care, with the yearly physical examination +/- routine labwork (heartworm and fecal testing, wellness blood screens) as the main reason to take pets to the vet on a regular basis.

 

Vaccination may be part of the preventative care package, but it shouldn't be the mainstay. This is a concept that many younger vets have embraced, but the older vets are having trouble making the change. It's usually the older generation that is resistant to switching to more extended protocols because they fear losing business. And it's not necessarily a "quest for easy money" - veterinary medicine does not have a large profit margin, and losing business may mean going out of business.

 

The currently recommended 3-year vaccination protocols are a bit of a compromise, as well as a reflection of the limitations of scientific evidence available. There just aren't many lifetime studies to prove that vaccines protect for life. However, I do believe that certain vaccines probably do protect for life. The distemper virus is very similar to the measles virus in people.

 

For the DHPP vaccine, I do believe that a booster 1 year after the puppy series is needed for full protection. After that, I recommend every 3 years, but for middle-aged to older dogs, I wouldn't have a problem not continuing to vaccinate at the owner's request. And if the dog has had a vaccine reaction, I often recommend no longer vaccinating for DHPP at all.

 

If you go to an extended protocol for DHPP, you really don't need a vaccine with a 3-year label claim. Studies have shown protection lasts for 3 years or longer using any of the DHPP vaccines on the market. And because of the AAHA guidelines which support the 3-year protocol, most of the vaccine manufacturers will back up their vaccines if used every 3 years, even if the label says 1 year.

 

Here are the most recent AAHA Canine Vaccination Guidelines from 2011.

[BatterseaBrindl]

Thanks Jennifer!

Our fabulous vet would agree wholeheartedly.

[Tallgreydogmom]

We rotate the shots and have the 3 years shot for both. At age 10 I usually do not have them have anymore shots. Animal Control once told me old dogs with a good shot history were OK not to have more shots.