George Did Not Come With Rabies Tag

[Guest wrldruler]

So we got George a month ago. He did not come with a rabies tag. We were told the medical records would come to us soon. And in a few days, the records were here, but still no tag.

 

He came with a two-page typed report from a vet in New Hampshire, saying he had been neutred, examined, heartwormed on 6-7-07. Stapled to this sheet was a small (2" x 4") Certificate of Vaccination, dated 2-4-07. It was hand written chicken scratch.

 

I called the New Hampshire vet and they said they don't do rabies shots there, and that the little sheet was not theres.

 

Problem is that the little sheet lacks the vet address. Here is what it says (question marks denote illegible hand writing):

 

Owner: Alderson Kennel

Address: #15 St Pete Kennel Club ???

Date: 2-4-07

Phone: ?24-1954

 

Driftwood George

Male, Brindle, Greyhound, 69 lbs, Born 4/1/05

 

Vaccination Tag No: Left Blank

Vaccine Serial No: ???????? A589384

 

Veterinarian: 4187 Donal B????n

 

 

So any idea what I can do to get a rabies tag. Is there a way to track down the previous vet? Should I just wait to get him re-vaccinated in Feb 08? Should I get him re-vaccinated now?

 

Thanks,

 

Chris

 

[Guest Oh_Greyt]

It won't hurt to re-vaccinate him now (as long as it's been two weeks since his last vaccine it's fine)... Then you'll have the tag, a more verifiable certificate, and peace of mind incase you should ever have to prove his vaccinations. It almost sounds like the kennel did their own vaccines, which is fine for all but rabies (legally only a vet can administer rabies - at least for it to count).

[Guest LynnM]

You can get him revaccinated or you can use take your proof of vaccination to your vet and have a tag issued.

 

Lynn

[dmdsmoxie]

I'd get him re- vaccinated now instead of waiting. Better to be safe.

[Guest LynnM]

Those certs aren't always easy to read. I can visualize exactly what it looks like and also the thrashing that it probably got. The dog was vaccinated in FL before he came north.

 

Lynn

[GeorgeofNE]

My dog (also George) also did not come with a tag despite it being a law in our state that all dogs be vaccinated and a tag issued. He had a clearly home made certificate that said "Greyhound Rabies Certificate" on the top, but my vet accepted that. He just had his first three-year vaccine last week, and now he has an official tag!

 

As my group explained to me, there is really NO CHANCE that they didn't vaccinate him for rabies--remember, the animal is there to hopefully make money, and they do need to protect their property.

 

 

[Guest Ola]

I would use the certificate and not revaccinate. I think we get rabies tags with our shots, but they just go straight into the filing cabinet. We have used the paper certificate when we needed to show proof of vaccination to the vet or training school. Next time he is due for the vaccine, see if you can get the 3 year one (if allowed by your state) - it is essentially the same shot, but it's "rated" differently, which means that you only need it every 3 years (good idea since there is always a risk of reactions).

[sweetdogs]

I'm not big on overvaccinating & would avoid giving another shot until I had to. Here is an article on it. I'm sure that he's adequately protected against rabies being vaccinated for it more than once during his career.

 

In NY & NJ, what's important is the certificate, not the tag. That's what the town wants to see for licensing purposes. Maybe it's the same where you are.

[Guest alannamac]

Exactly the same thing happened to me with Bandit, but my vet accepted the certificate because it had a date of vaccination on it. Did you use an adoption group? They may know more details on where your pup was vaccinated. In my case, Bandit came from New Hampshire, was vetted , neutered etc. in Roanoke VA, and then adopted from a group that covered the VA/MD area.

[NeylasMom]

Not all dogs come with tags, but the certificate is proof enough. When you get your county license (which is required by law around here), take the certificate with you. The license tag will then serve as proof of vaccination.

 

If you are still considering re-vaccinating, you might want to check out the articles here on vaccination first:

http://www.caberfeidh.com/HHC.htm

 

 

[turbotaina]

Not all dogs come with tags, but the certificate is proof enough. When you get your county license (which is required by law around here), take the certificate with you. The license tag will then serve as proof of vaccination.

 

 

Very often our NH dogs don't come with rabies tags at all if they've had a track vaccination, just the certification, which is what your licensing authority needs (tags don't have dates on them and are largely irrelevant). Not a big deal. At any rate, it appears your boy was vaccinated in February '07. Why don't you wait until Feb. '08 to vaccinate? Doing it sooner really doesn't make any sense.

[Guest Che_mar_Cody]

I'd get him re- vaccinated now instead of waiting. Better to be safe.

100% agree

[Guest KennelMom]

I'd just re-vaccinate if you need a tag and don't want to rely on the certificate. If he came straight from a track, odds are that he was and is UTD on rabies vaccination.

[Guest FullMetalFrank]

Here, the vet does the rabies shot but the tag comes from the county when you pay your licensing fee. My dog does not have a tag (and no he is not licensed with the county, either; I keep his certificate on file for proof that he is vaccinated) If it were me I probably would not re-vaccinate; but I would give a copy of his certificate to your vet so they can get it into their computer system and will know when it's time for his next rabies shot.

[Pepperjack]

Slightly off topic, but does George's tail still wag non-stop? Seemed like such a happy friendly guy.

[Guest trevdog]

Do you know which group sent him up that way? Alderson kennel is great, BTW. My Bridge boy Jam was a kennel pet there. I'm wondering if he was sent up there through one of our GPA hauls.....the certs are handwritten and the vet info is actually the vacc lot # and Drontal B I believe.

[Jiffer]

We don't get tags here either. In fact, none of my dogs have a tag on their collar for rabies. Their medical certificate states that they are current... that's all I need.

In most cases, if someone needs proof of vaccination, they need to see your medical certificate that gives the date of innoculation.

[dmdsmoxie]

Coming from a track I'm sure George is vaccinated. My thought about re-vaccinating now is, what if George gets in a fight with another dog, or nips a person. Chris is going to have to show the dog has his rabies shot. According to Chris it is hard to read, looks like chicken scratch, the NH vet said it wasn't theirs and there is no vet address. I would avoid a potential problem. Can you imagine trying to get this straightend out after the fact?

 

AS far as overvaccinating, here in Massachusetts, if your dog is up to date with his rabies shots and got in a fight with a with a wild animal you are asked to take your dog to your vet for a booster rabies shot.

[Greylover97]

From what I understand the racing kennels bring in their own vet or the vet that works at the track to do the vaccinations. So that certificate he came with is proof that he was vaccinated for rabies.

 

Around here nobody accepts the rabies tag; they always ask for the certificate.

[turbotaina]

From what I understand the racing kennels bring in their own vet or the vet that works at the track to do the vaccinations. So that certificate he came with is proof that he was vaccinated for rabies.

 

Around here nobody accepts the rabies tag; they always ask for the certificate.

 

Exactly.

Edited August 9, 2007 by turbotaina

[Neighsayer]

As others from NJ have stated....rabies tag doesn't count for anything here. You have a certificate with a date of vaccination so you should be covered. Did you show it to your vet? He should know if it covers you.

I have 5 dogs but none wear a rabies tag. I think I do have a few tags in the desk but could never figure out why I kept them. Your vet can tell you if a tag is required where you live.

[lothianjavert]

From what I understand the racing kennels bring in their own vet or the vet that works at the track to do the vaccinations. So that certificate he came with is proof that he was vaccinated for rabies.

 

Around here nobody accepts the rabies tag; they always ask for the certificate.

 

Exactly.

 

If you apply for a county license, you'll need the certificate, not the tag. If you really want a tag, you may be able to get one by showing the certificate to the vet.

 

Sully and D. only came with certificates. The vet accepted those and did not revaccinate (until it was time for another rabies vacc.).

[Guest wrldruler]

So far, I have always shown the certificate as proof of rabies, and have had no problems (except at the Petsmart groomers, but that's a different story I will post in the rant section one day).

 

All my life, I had *assumed* that all dogs were required to wear a rabies tag as proof of a rabies shot. I am starting think that may not be the case. I will continue to pick through the Maryland and County code to see if a rabies tag is required.

 

I got the dog registered with Cecil County, and we were required to show the rabies certificate. He wears his Cecil County tag. So I am thinking he will be fine if he gets picked up in Cecil County, and they look him up in their database. Not sure what will happen if he ventures outside the county.

 

Based on your comments, I now *assume* that folks don't trust the rabies tag anyway, and if they are concerned, would call the vet for confirmation that he is vaccinated, or will ask me for a certificate.

 

I'll talk to my local vet to see what they think -- but I will probably just wait until February of next year when he has to be vaccinated again anyway.

 

Thanks,

 

Chris

 

 

[Guest wrldruler]

Slightly off topic, but does George's tail still wag non-stop? Seemed like such a happy friendly guy.

 

Well, he wags his happy little nub now.

 

The Happy Tail was not healing, and we couldn't keep a bandage on despite all our efforts. It started to get infected, and he started to feel bad. It was probably broken or fractured, and the vet thinks it had been broken before because it was all crooked.

 

After talking with the vet, the Adoption group, and everyone here on Greytalk, we decided to put an end to the misery and have part of his tail amputated.

 

He healed perfectly, and didn't even need the e-collar we got for him. Got the sutures out a week or so ago.

 

He's now very happy and has started to come out of his shell in the last 2 weeks. He has started playing with stuffies a lot and has started doing zoomies. I don't think he misses his tail at all.

 

We're still struggling with his diet and "puddin poop", gas, and recently an upset stomach. But he doesn't seem to mind. Just goes with the flow. Yesterday we started switching him from Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach Salmon to Solid Gold Beef. Fingers crossed that he does better with this new food.

 

We'll all be at the Picnic in September. Hope to see you there.

 

Thanks,

 

Chris

Edited August 9, 2007 by wrldruler

[Diane4114]

So we got George a month ago. He did not come with a rabies tag. We were told the medical records would come to us soon. And in a few days, the records were here, but still no tag.

 

He came with a two-page typed report from a vet in New Hampshire, saying he had been neutred, examined, heartwormed on 6-7-07. Stapled to this sheet was a small (2" x 4") Certificate of Vaccination, dated 2-4-07. It was hand written chicken scratch.

 

I called the New Hampshire vet and they said they don't do rabies shots there, and that the little sheet was not theres.

 

Problem is that the little sheet lacks the vet address. Here is what it says (question marks denote illegible hand writing):

 

Owner: Alderson Kennel

Address: #15 St Pete Kennel Club ???

Date: 2-4-07

Phone: ?24-1954

 

Driftwood George

Male, Brindle, Greyhound, 69 lbs, Born 4/1/05

 

Vaccination Tag No: Left Blank

Vaccine Serial No: ???????? A589384

 

Veterinarian: 4187 Donal B????n

 

 

So any idea what I can do to get a rabies tag. Is there a way to track down the previous vet? Should I just wait to get him re-vaccinated in Feb 08? Should I get him re-vaccinated now?

 

Thanks,

 

Chris

 

My second GH was vaccinated at the track ( Hinsdale) and received a health certificate from there as well. On it it listed his vaccination history. They had used his ear tattoo numbers as a rabies tag number in place of an actual tag.

Maybe this has happened with his as well. If there is nothing like this in the paperwork you have, maybe the group has more and they have it.