Canine Vaccines:
The Shocking Truth
About Yearly Boosters
We’re all familiar with those postcards from our veterinarians about canine vaccines, telling us that it’s time for Max or Molly to get their yearly boosters. But if you’ve read our articles on
dog vaccinations
and
Jonas's vaccination story
, by now you’re probably wondering if those yearly shots are really helping – or if they might actually be hurting our canine companions. 
I’m certain that after you review the following table on dog vaccines, you are going to be even more concerned about subjecting your furry kid to annual vaccine boosters. This table is courtesy of Ron Schultz, PhD, chair of the Department of Pathobiological Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and one of the foremost researchers in the world on animal vaccines. Dr. Schultz has been studying animal vaccines for more than 30 years. A good deal of his research concentrates on the duration of immunity provided by vaccines. In other words, how long exactly is a dog protected from a disease once he is vaccinated? As you'll see in this table, Dr. Schultz’s research demonstrates that immunity for the core vaccines (except rabies) lasts for many years. Why not print this page and take it with you to your veterinarian and use it as a starting point for a discussion about canine over-vaccination? You might also want to think about this question posed by Dr. Schultz: “Why, when you know from personal experience that life-long immunity exists for many human vaccines, do you have great difficulty believing a canine vaccine can provide life-long immunity?” Interesting question, don’t you think?
What Everyone Needs to Know About Canine Vaccines and Vaccination Programs | Minimum Duration of Immunity for Vaccines |
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| Vaccine | Minimum Duration of Immunity | Methods Used to Determine Immunity |
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| CORE VACCINES |
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| Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) | | | | Rockborn Strain | 7 yrs/15 yrs | challenge/serology | | Onderstepoort Strain | 5 yrs/9 yrs | challenge/serology | Canarypox
Vectored rCDV | 3 yrs/4 yrs | challenge/serology | | Canine Adenovirus-2 (CAV-2) | 7 yrs/9 yrs | challenge-CAV-1/serology | | Canine Parvovirus-2 (CPV-2) | 7 yrs/10 yrs | challenge/serology | | Canine Rabies | 3 yrs/5 yrs | challenge/serology |
© Copyright 2007
Ronald D. Schultz, Professor and Chair
Department of Pathobiological Sciences
School of Veterinary Medicine
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706
Presented at the 2007 AKC Health Foundation, St. Louis MO
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