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Greetings!
Kris L. Christine, Introduction from MAINE
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Greetings Nexu -- thank you for the welcome!
I am a devoted dog lover and have one dog left at the moment -- a yellow lab named Butter (4) who misses his buddy, Meadow, terribly.
Yes, I have tons of information to share with you -- but will try not to overload you all at once. Your boxers are so handsome, incredibly muscular -- they make my Butter look like such a whimp.
Kris
I am a devoted dog lover and have one dog left at the moment -- a yellow lab named Butter (4) who misses his buddy, Meadow, terribly.
Yes, I have tons of information to share with you -- but will try not to overload you all at once. Your boxers are so handsome, incredibly muscular -- they make my Butter look like such a whimp.
Kris
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319 Posts
Thank you for the empathy, dog lovers know just how agonizing it is to lose one of our devoted friends. With the exception of my immediate family, I love my dogs more than any of my relatives.
I still struggle to cope with Meadow's loss every day -- I am convinced that my ignorance about pet vaccines cost him his life.
Well, it certainly won't happen to another one of my dogs, and hopefully nobody else's. Dogs truly are humankind's best friend, it is such a gift to be able to share our lives with them!
I still struggle to cope with Meadow's loss every day -- I am convinced that my ignorance about pet vaccines cost him his life.
Well, it certainly won't happen to another one of my dogs, and hopefully nobody else's. Dogs truly are humankind's best friend, it is such a gift to be able to share our lives with them!
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2,592 Posts
Welcome..glad to have you. Thanks for the valuable information you have provided us all with.
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I have much more on various vaccines, but don't want to bombard you.
Please do e-mail me for the full text of the fibrosarcomas at vaccine injection sites study, AAHA Guidelines, Dr. Dodds' adverse reactions papers, etc... which you are free to share with anyone and everyone who has or loves a dog! Contact me at [email protected].
Please do e-mail me for the full text of the fibrosarcomas at vaccine injection sites study, AAHA Guidelines, Dr. Dodds' adverse reactions papers, etc... which you are free to share with anyone and everyone who has or loves a dog! Contact me at [email protected].
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744 Posts
Hi Kris,
I wanted to thank you for sharing this info and for helping to spearhead the Rabies Challenge Fund. As an owner of a boxer gal with multiple immune mediated conditions that I feel were vaccine induced, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping to finally wrap some qualified research around the effects of routine vaccination in our beloved canine companions.
My girl has not been vaccinated for rabies in the last 6 years and her blood serum antibody titer still shows that she's 150 times adequately protected. (Granted, this does not take into consideration passive immunity passed along from my show dogs and vaccinated dogs, but it's still enlightening just the same.)
Unfortunately, state law mandates that I vaccinate my other two on a triennial schedule, as my vet will only write a letter for the immuno compromised one, but your study does give hope that I might be able to use titers in leu of vaccines with my other two as well so that I don't worry about going through what I have gone through with my first one all over again.
Thanks again for all you do.
I wanted to thank you for sharing this info and for helping to spearhead the Rabies Challenge Fund. As an owner of a boxer gal with multiple immune mediated conditions that I feel were vaccine induced, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping to finally wrap some qualified research around the effects of routine vaccination in our beloved canine companions.
My girl has not been vaccinated for rabies in the last 6 years and her blood serum antibody titer still shows that she's 150 times adequately protected. (Granted, this does not take into consideration passive immunity passed along from my show dogs and vaccinated dogs, but it's still enlightening just the same.)
Unfortunately, state law mandates that I vaccinate my other two on a triennial schedule, as my vet will only write a letter for the immuno compromised one, but your study does give hope that I might be able to use titers in leu of vaccines with my other two as well so that I don't worry about going through what I have gone through with my first one all over again.
Thanks again for all you do.
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Jessica, thank you. What I do is my attempt to redeem myself for failing Meadow, and it's the least I can do to honor him, even if it was not possible for me to save him.
If you e-mail me privately, I can send you a copy of the l992 French challenge study, in which Michel Aubert (he is the researcher who developed the rabies titer test) and his team demonstrated that dogs were immune to a rabies challenge 5 years after vaccination. Dr. Schultz's serological studies show that dogs have antibody titer counts at levels known to confer immunity 7 years after vaccination.
Because the USDA does not require veterinary vaccine manufacturers to provide long-term duration of immunity studies in order to license their products, and they have no financial incentive to fund expensive research that could result in decreased sales, pet owners are funding this research themselves. Vaccine manufacturers are only required to show that their vaccines confer immunity as long as the label states -- they could recommend giving a rabies booster every 6 months if they chose to. Some manufacturers relabel the 3 year rabies vaccine as a 1 year product. (If you click on this link http://www.calmanimalcare.com/vaccine.htm , you will be taken to the Calm Animal Care website, which has posted Colorado State University's Small Animal Vaccination Protocol for its veterinary teaching hospital. In their protocol, it states: Even with rabies vaccines, the label may be misleading in that a three year duration of immunity product may also be labeled and sold as a one year duration of immunity product.)
The rabies challenge studies are being conducted by Dr. Ronald Schultz of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine (his research on pet vaccines forms a large part of the scientific base for the American Animal Hospital Association's 2003 and 2006 Canine Vaccine Guidelines as well as part of the American Academy of Feline Practitioners' Feline Vaccine Guidelines) according to USDA vaccine licensing standards. If the studies are able to replicate the French challenge studies, then the science will be available for individual states to extend their immunization requirements to 5 years. Hopefully the studies will also be able to prove a minimum 7 year DOI by challenge as well, and laws can be extended again.
My Meadow had his last rabies shot at the age of 6. When he turned 9 and was due for a booster, for which he received a medical waiver due to his metasticized cancer, I had a rabies titer done on him. His titer count was 1:5,800 -- in humans, a 1:5 is considered adequate to confer immunity; a 1:245 count in dogs is very good. The rabies vaccine is the most potent of all the veterinary vaccines and dogs should not be required to be immunized with it any more often than is necessary to maintain immunity.
Rather long response -- it's obvious that this is a deeply personal issue for me, as it obviously is for you as well. To give you an idea of how important the world's 2 leading veterinary vaccine research scientists (Dr. W. Jean Dodds and Dr. Ronald Schultz) feel these studies are, they have both volunteered all of their time to this effort, as I have and The Rabies Challenge Fund website designer, Andrea Brin, and the University of Wisconsin waived their usual 48% overhead fees for this research. None of us in the RCF are paid or reimbursed for our expenses -- we shoulder our own costs -- the only expenses paid out of the fund is for insurance and IRS filing fees, otherwise, all donations go directly to finance the studies.
If you e-mail me privately, I can send you a copy of the l992 French challenge study, in which Michel Aubert (he is the researcher who developed the rabies titer test) and his team demonstrated that dogs were immune to a rabies challenge 5 years after vaccination. Dr. Schultz's serological studies show that dogs have antibody titer counts at levels known to confer immunity 7 years after vaccination.
Because the USDA does not require veterinary vaccine manufacturers to provide long-term duration of immunity studies in order to license their products, and they have no financial incentive to fund expensive research that could result in decreased sales, pet owners are funding this research themselves. Vaccine manufacturers are only required to show that their vaccines confer immunity as long as the label states -- they could recommend giving a rabies booster every 6 months if they chose to. Some manufacturers relabel the 3 year rabies vaccine as a 1 year product. (If you click on this link http://www.calmanimalcare.com/vaccine.htm , you will be taken to the Calm Animal Care website, which has posted Colorado State University's Small Animal Vaccination Protocol for its veterinary teaching hospital. In their protocol, it states: Even with rabies vaccines, the label may be misleading in that a three year duration of immunity product may also be labeled and sold as a one year duration of immunity product.)
The rabies challenge studies are being conducted by Dr. Ronald Schultz of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine (his research on pet vaccines forms a large part of the scientific base for the American Animal Hospital Association's 2003 and 2006 Canine Vaccine Guidelines as well as part of the American Academy of Feline Practitioners' Feline Vaccine Guidelines) according to USDA vaccine licensing standards. If the studies are able to replicate the French challenge studies, then the science will be available for individual states to extend their immunization requirements to 5 years. Hopefully the studies will also be able to prove a minimum 7 year DOI by challenge as well, and laws can be extended again.
My Meadow had his last rabies shot at the age of 6. When he turned 9 and was due for a booster, for which he received a medical waiver due to his metasticized cancer, I had a rabies titer done on him. His titer count was 1:5,800 -- in humans, a 1:5 is considered adequate to confer immunity; a 1:245 count in dogs is very good. The rabies vaccine is the most potent of all the veterinary vaccines and dogs should not be required to be immunized with it any more often than is necessary to maintain immunity.
Rather long response -- it's obvious that this is a deeply personal issue for me, as it obviously is for you as well. To give you an idea of how important the world's 2 leading veterinary vaccine research scientists (Dr. W. Jean Dodds and Dr. Ronald Schultz) feel these studies are, they have both volunteered all of their time to this effort, as I have and The Rabies Challenge Fund website designer, Andrea Brin, and the University of Wisconsin waived their usual 48% overhead fees for this research. None of us in the RCF are paid or reimbursed for our expenses -- we shoulder our own costs -- the only expenses paid out of the fund is for insurance and IRS filing fees, otherwise, all donations go directly to finance the studies.
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882 Posts
Hello, and welcome from Gaby and me!.....The information you shared is very interesting, I've always wondered if the immunity from a vaccine lasts longer then stated....Gaby has had her last rabies vaccine back at the end of November, and is due for the booster at the end of November 2009...She has also been vaccinated for Lepto in Oct 2007, and I also got the lyme vaccine done at the end of November 2007, because we live in an area were lyme and lepto is present....I would be very interested in your opinion as to who long the immunity for all these vaccines will last.
thanks in advance!
thanks in advance!
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319 Posts
Rene,
Yesterday I posted information on the Leptospira vaccine (http://www.boxerforums.com/modules.php? ... c&start=15) under "lepto" and today I'll post information on Lyme (LYME--Vaccinate or Not?
Yesterday I posted information on the Leptospira vaccine (http://www.boxerforums.com/modules.php? ... c&start=15) under "lepto" and today I'll post information on Lyme (LYME--Vaccinate or Not?
Welcome to the forum, I will be interested in reading the articles you post. I am planning on getting the Lepto shot for Kiah as there has been several outbreaks in the area, and have just talked to an owner who almost lost his Pointer to Lepto that goes to the same dog parks as we do.
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Hi Kris,
I'm very familiar with Dr Dodds and Dr Schultz's work, as I have been following it for years.
At present, I see titers as nothing more than a CYA measure on both mine and my vet's part, simply because it is our county's recommendation to vaccinate once every three years. . . And he at least requires that titers be done to write me my letter.
Regardless, I do appreciate all that you have done, and I do feel that it is very important that these programs continue to be researched and funded.
Welcome to Boxer Forums!
I'm very familiar with Dr Dodds and Dr Schultz's work, as I have been following it for years.
At present, I see titers as nothing more than a CYA measure on both mine and my vet's part, simply because it is our county's recommendation to vaccinate once every three years. . . And he at least requires that titers be done to write me my letter.Regardless, I do appreciate all that you have done, and I do feel that it is very important that these programs continue to be researched and funded.
Welcome to Boxer Forums!
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319 Posts
Burning Rivers, the rabies challenge studies currently being conducted are challenge studies, NOT titer studies, and they are being conducted according to USDA vaccine-licensing standards -- which is what current rabies laws are based upon.
If the studies replicate the French 5 year challenge results, the science will be publicly available for the individual states to change their laws. The same will be true if the 7 year challenge study results are successful.
If the studies replicate the French 5 year challenge results, the science will be publicly available for the individual states to change their laws. The same will be true if the 7 year challenge study results are successful.
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744 Posts
Yes, I'm sorry - I didn't mean to confuse the two issues, rather, was just trying to say that I appreciate what you guys are doing with challenging the current vaccine recommendations (and backing it up by stating that I too don't see a need to vaccinate as frequently as we are and that I was doing titers instead of vaccinating [because of my vet requiring them as "proof" that my dog is protected]). When a day comes that I can toss the titers as well as a result of the individual states changing their laws, I'll be a much happier camper.
Anyway, thanks again.
Anyway, thanks again.
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Welcome! Thank you so much for all the great information you are providing...After Jess(BurningRiver) posted some last year about over vaccinating I made the decision as well not to continue with excess shots, against the advice of my vet I may add, but it's nice to read and learn more about all this
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