Why It's Important to Vaccinate Your Dog
While it may seem difficult to believe that your perfectly healthy pup could easily get sick, animals are really no different humans when it comes to contracting dangerous diseases. With the winter seasons bringing about the threat of these illnesses it's a good time to consider immunization for your dog. Here are some reasons why vaccination is so important to your dog's health, brought to you by our dog training and dog health experts.
What Are Vaccines?
Vaccines are designed to provide protection and immune response against one or several types of dangerous diseases. They trigger the immune system's production of virus-fighting antibodies and can mitigate the severity of diseases. They can even help counter some diseases completely.
How Do They Help Your Dog?
Vaccinating your dog protects them from deadly diseases. They can also prevent the need for costly disease treatments, and keep your dog from contracting a sickness from other pets they interact with. Keep in mind, though, that vaccines are preventative, not curative. Vaccinating a sick pet will do no good once the pet has already contracted an illness. Vaccinations are made for healthy pets to help fight off disease before it can be developed.
How Often Should My Dog Be Vaccinated?
While it varies depending on the age of your dog, most vaccinations' protection gradually wears off and should be administered every few years (some require more frequency). Young puppies also need a more persistent administration schedule. Consult your veterinarian to discuss what vaccination your dog needs and what schedule will work best.
Which Vaccines Should My Dog Receive?
There are many different types of vaccinations for different circumstances, all depending on your dog. "Core" vaccines protect from multiple diseases common in a certain area, and "non-core" vaccines are made for pets with more special demands in their situations. Talk with your veterinarian to decide what kind of vaccines your dog needs most for protection in their lifestyle.
Are There Risks?
While it's true that any type of medical procedure can have its risks, vaccinations are produced under very strict safety rules and the most common negative responses aren't serious or long lasting. But the small possibility of your pup having a reaction shouldn't justify considering not getting them vaccinated. Improvements in vaccine technology, development, and technique have made great leaps in recent years. More adverse reactions are very rare, and thousands of dogs get vaccinated every day without incident. The benefit of protecting your dog from a potentially fatal disease far outweighs the risk in this case.
Vaccines help prevent many different diseases that can be harmful-potentially even life threatening-to your dog. Without proper vaccination, they are left unprepared for potentially contracting one of these illnesses. They're an important piece of your dog's overall health.
Do you have any questions or concerns? Contact Dog Training Elite today for professional dog training services and vaccination tips for your pup, we're happy to help!