Misty
Misty was one tough dog, now I look back on things with hindsight.
Just before I rescued her, she had contracted Parvo Virus, and had been treated at a veterinary clinic. She survived. Later, when she was with me, we went to that same veterinary clinic, and started her vaccination schedule.
I was a complete idiot for a start. It took me quite a while to recognise that having already contracted and survived Parvo, she never needed any annual booster against this for the rest of her life! She was naturally immune!
Yet that same veterinary clinic which had saved her life only MONTHS before, and should have had her medical records -recommended the regular combination vaccination, including Parvo, as an annual booster....and I, in my ignorance, complied with it.
She was fine each year, until she got to about age eight or so. Then suddenly, approximately 24 hours after her regular boosters, she became very ill with vomiting and diarrhea. I fasted her with water only, then introduced boiled rice (the thing you are advised to do) She ate a little, but was incredibly and scarily weak. I knew the vaccination had to be the cause, so telephoned the vet's surgery for advice.
They had NO advice beyond what I was already doing! They said it must be an unfortunate co- incidence, and had never heard of a vaccine reaction such as I was describing. They said the only possible reaction would be an inflammation at the injection site.
Even though I didn't know much, I knew this answer was b/s. There is only so much fooling people can do with your instincts!
Misty was so wobbly on her legs. She was a fine, healthy in-her-prime kind of dog. The kind of dog who wants a three mile walk twice a day and chases frisbee across fields. She had been that way right up until that vaccination, and then suddenly she was like an old, sick dog.
Two days later, she started to recover. Her strength came back gradually over the next few days along with her appetite. But I decided I had to do some researching, and discovered titer testing.
So that was our next plan. We would get annual titer testing done instead. It was triple the cost of the boosters, but well worth it, I thought.
Until....I took her for her blood sample, and that was traumatic. The vet said it took 40 minutes and four people to "hold her down", for a procedure which should have been possible to do with me present holding her gently, and blood taken from a foreleg; maximum five minutes.
Oh no. The young vet insisted on taking her through to the back room, and drawing blood from the jugular vein, which meant shaving her first. Misty was not happy at the vet's and fought them all the way. She would have relaxed with me there.
She was so deeply traumatised, when I eventually went to collect her she was seriously stressed...
well....I have never SEEN a dog so stressed as that! I was afraid she might have a heart attack, and remember thinking that at the time The vet then told me that Leptospirosis did not "titer" well at all, so they had given her the single booster for Lepto.
(They deliberately put my dog into that serious stress situation? And then innoculated a dog while in a serious stress situation??) Of course I did not know these things then. Most of my education has been in hindsight. But my basic instincts told me that was not right.
Two days afterwards, she had severe diarrhea and vomiting again, but recovered quickly. She was fine the next day after water fasting and then some boiled white fish and rice. (If only I had
known!!)
My poor girl. You were so tough and your lovely strong body fought back. And I didn't know any better at the time.
Anyway, every year we did titer testing. She was found to be immune to Parvo, immune for over five years to Distemper. Only the Lepto wouldn't titer, so we were strongly advised to have that booster each year. I knew the high risks of contracting Leptospirosis in our environment so always agreed to it.
At fourteen, nearly fifteen years old she was behaving like a four or five year old. She was incredibly strong.
The time for her titers/boosters came around. This time I got a bad instinct about it, and wanted to say "No more vaccinations. She is getting too old to cope."
Yet she seemed so well in herself.
The titers were all fine again for everything except Lepto. So I reluctantly agreed to have her given that single shot again.
Only weeks later she became sick, but this time it was Hemangiosarcoma. She was diagnosed in May 2012, and passed away 5th June 2012.
I will always wonder -did that vaccination have anything to do with her developing cancer?
My good strong youthful dog Misty. Many blessings to your beautiful Soul forever.
Sylvia. (and Misty)
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Misty was one tough dog, now I look back on things with hindsight.
Just before I rescued her, she had contracted Parvo Virus, and had been treated at a veterinary clinic. She survived. Later, when she was with me, we went to that same veterinary clinic, and started her vaccination schedule.
I was a complete idiot for a start. It took me quite a while to recognise that having already contracted and survived Parvo, she never needed any annual booster against this for the rest of her life! She was naturally immune!
Yet that same veterinary clinic which had saved her life only MONTHS before, and should have had her medical records -recommended the regular combination vaccination, including Parvo, as an annual booster....and I, in my ignorance, complied with it.
She was fine each year, until she got to about age eight or so. Then suddenly, approximately 24 hours after her regular boosters, she became very ill with vomiting and diarrhea. I fasted her with water only, then introduced boiled rice (the thing you are advised to do) She ate a little, but was incredibly and scarily weak. I knew the vaccination had to be the cause, so telephoned the vet's surgery for advice.
They had NO advice beyond what I was already doing! They said it must be an unfortunate co- incidence, and had never heard of a vaccine reaction such as I was describing. They said the only possible reaction would be an inflammation at the injection site.
Even though I didn't know much, I knew this answer was b/s. There is only so much fooling people can do with your instincts!
Misty was so wobbly on her legs. She was a fine, healthy in-her-prime kind of dog. The kind of dog who wants a three mile walk twice a day and chases frisbee across fields. She had been that way right up until that vaccination, and then suddenly she was like an old, sick dog.
Two days later, she started to recover. Her strength came back gradually over the next few days along with her appetite. But I decided I had to do some researching, and discovered titer testing.
So that was our next plan. We would get annual titer testing done instead. It was triple the cost of the boosters, but well worth it, I thought.
Until....I took her for her blood sample, and that was traumatic. The vet said it took 40 minutes and four people to "hold her down", for a procedure which should have been possible to do with me present holding her gently, and blood taken from a foreleg; maximum five minutes.
Oh no. The young vet insisted on taking her through to the back room, and drawing blood from the jugular vein, which meant shaving her first. Misty was not happy at the vet's and fought them all the way. She would have relaxed with me there.
She was so deeply traumatised, when I eventually went to collect her she was seriously stressed...
well....I have never SEEN a dog so stressed as that! I was afraid she might have a heart attack, and remember thinking that at the time The vet then told me that Leptospirosis did not "titer" well at all, so they had given her the single booster for Lepto.
(They deliberately put my dog into that serious stress situation? And then innoculated a dog while in a serious stress situation??) Of course I did not know these things then. Most of my education has been in hindsight. But my basic instincts told me that was not right.
Two days afterwards, she had severe diarrhea and vomiting again, but recovered quickly. She was fine the next day after water fasting and then some boiled white fish and rice. (If only I had
known!!)
My poor girl. You were so tough and your lovely strong body fought back. And I didn't know any better at the time.
Anyway, every year we did titer testing. She was found to be immune to Parvo, immune for over five years to Distemper. Only the Lepto wouldn't titer, so we were strongly advised to have that booster each year. I knew the high risks of contracting Leptospirosis in our environment so always agreed to it.
At fourteen, nearly fifteen years old she was behaving like a four or five year old. She was incredibly strong.
The time for her titers/boosters came around. This time I got a bad instinct about it, and wanted to say "No more vaccinations. She is getting too old to cope."
Yet she seemed so well in herself.
The titers were all fine again for everything except Lepto. So I reluctantly agreed to have her given that single shot again.
Only weeks later she became sick, but this time it was Hemangiosarcoma. She was diagnosed in May 2012, and passed away 5th June 2012.
I will always wonder -did that vaccination have anything to do with her developing cancer?
My good strong youthful dog Misty. Many blessings to your beautiful Soul forever.
Sylvia. (and Misty)
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