Source: Dr. Karen Becker
www. mercolapets.com
Two years ago, the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA)
canine vaccination task force updated their vaccination guidelines. The
task force changed the previous annual protocol for core vaccines to
an every 3-year protocol, with the exception of 1-year rabies shots.
(In many states you can choose either a 1-year or 3-year rabies vaccine
for your pet. If you choose a 1-year shot, or if your state doesn't
offer a 3-year vaccine, the annual protocol is required by law.)
The task force also acknowledged in the updated guidelines that for
non-rabies core vaccines, immunity lasts at least 5 years for distemper
and parvovirus, and at least 7 years for adenovirus. This means that
even the updated 3-year protocol is overkill.
Veterinarians who are vaccine minimalists, and certainly I am one of
them, viewed this protocol change as a small step in the right
direction. We feel re-vaccinating pets against diseases they are already
immune to poses significant and unnecessary health risks
Why Are 60 Percent of Vets Still Doing Annual Re-Vaccinations?
Sadly, despite the new guidelines that are now two years old,
members of the traditional veterinary community have been slow to adopt
the new recommended protocol.
According to Mark Kimsey, a DVM who works
for Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica Inc., a veterinary pharmaceutical
company, "Basically, what we're seeing is there's a gradual trend toward three-year protocols."
Dr. Richard Ford, a DVM who is on both the AAHA canine vaccination
task force and the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP)
feline vaccination advisory panel, agrees with Kimsey. "It's a slow change," says Ford. "Most practices still recommend annual vaccinations. All the vet schools are teaching triennial vaccinations."
Ford believes, based on feedback from vaccine manufacturer sales
reps, that 60 percent of veterinary practices are still re-vaccinating
on an annual rather than every 3-year basis. "Some acknowledged
the reality and changed their protocols, while others, fearing loss of a
major source of revenue, argued against anything other than the
time-honored paradigm: annual boosters," said Ford.
It appears there's no shortage of vets out there willing to openly admit they don't want to lose the income from unnecessary vaccinations
and new, safer protocols be damned.
Hopefully you're not taking your
own pet to a veterinarian with a similarly misguided, dangerous
practice philosophy.
Unwilling to Change? Addicted to Easy Money? Or a Bit of Both?
According to Veterinary Practice News, Dr. Gary D.
Norsworthy, owner of Alamo Feline Health Center in San Antonio and a
practicing vet for 40 years, is among the 60 percent who aren't budging
from an annual vaccination schedule for their patients.
His rationale is that he has a number of clients who will only bring
their cats in for wellness exams if they believe vaccines are needed.
Norsworthy says he's determined not to lose the opportunity to do
annual checkups on cats in his practice. So he uses only the 1-year
rabies vaccine, and tells his clients he must see their cats yearly.
Norsworthy believes "Internet chatter" scares cat owners into believing
vaccines are dangerous. He notes that his practice vaccinated 25
percent fewer cats in 2012 compared to 2007. He says he sees only one
case of feline vaccine-associated sarcoma for every 65,000 vaccines he injects.
Clearly, Dr. Norsworthy, like many conventional vets, makes no
connection between other feline health problems and repeated unnecessary
annual vaccinations. Like Norsworthy, many DVMs don't know or don't
choose to know about the dozens of other health crises that can arise
as the result of vaccines, and especially as the result of repeated
re-vaccinations.
Rather than figure out how to give clients logical, legitimate
reasons to bring their pets in for regular wellness exams, the majority
of vets apparently prefer to continue the risky business of
re-vaccinating their patients year in and year out.
Could it be this approach to pet care is why veterinary visits have steadily declined in recent years?
Is it really so difficult to explain to pet owners the benefits of
bringing their dog or cat in for at least one wellness visit a year?
From my experience, it's not difficult at all. I see the majority of the
patients in my practice for wellness visits twice a year, and it is
extremely rare that I administer any vaccine to an adult animal,
excluding the mandatory 3-year rabies.
Also according to Dr. Ford, there are some DVMs who would like to
follow the new guidelines, but are concerned that vaccine product
labels include text that reads "annual booster recommended."
This seems a very strange argument in favor of continuing annual
vaccinations, doesn't it?
If canine and feline vaccination advisory
panels have established new recommended guidelines, why would a vet
choose instead to take the advice of the vaccine manufacturer's product
label?
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