Have any of you vaccinated your own pet?

[Specsy]

One of the breeders I know here, seems to vaccinate her own pets, I don't know all the details but she usually orders the vaccinations from somewhere and injects all her own pets. She is not a veterinarian, nor does she have any qualifications to that extent.

Is it normal? Have any of you done it? How has it worked for you if you have?

 

[Backward_Cinderella]

I do. Every place I've ever run into though requires that you get the rabies vac from a veterinarian so it can be "licensed" properly. We usually orders through a local feed store and pick them up the same day they're delivered.

 

[Backward_Cinderella]

PS
It works better for us than taking Doom to the Vet, and Bobsie only ever gets rabies because she has nasty reactions to everything else. Doom is a nervous pee'er when it comes to vets, so we do them at home and save vet visits for emergencies and check ups.

 

[SaraB]

I'm always weary of the handling of vaccines if not bought from a vet. Not all companies specify the correct shipping (must be kept cool, shipped in 24 hours) and that can compromise the quality of the vaccine. When a vet purchases vaccines, they are purchased from suppliers that insure the quality and handle/ship it in such a way that it does not get warm.

I have vaccinated my own pets, but I purchase the vaccines directly from my vet.

 

[skittledoo]

I actually prefer to vaccinate my own pets (aside from rabies) and I've purchased the vaccines directly from the vet and administered them myself. I don't do Bamm's vaccines myself though because he's a screamer when it comes to getting vaccines done. I know my dog's a drama queen lol.

Cricket will be getting most of her future vaccines done by me though. There are a few things I don't vaccinate for at all as well, but personally I'm just not a huge fan of pumping my dogs with vaccines. They get their basics generally, rabies when needed and aside from that it just depends. I generally have the vet run a titers and based on that I decide what and if I want to vaccinate for anything.

 

[MafiaPrincess]

We're on minimal vaccs. Short of one year old shots all I've done in years is rabies. Most places DIY rabies is a no and has to be given by a vet so since it's really all I care about.. I hit rabies clinics.

 

[Southpaw]

I would, but I don't really vaccinate my pets at all lol. Rabies is really the only one I do, and a vet has to administer that. Juno does get bordetella as well, but the last time she was due for it, we had to go to the vet for blood work anyway... so it made more sense to just have them give it.

Plus, the only reason Juno gets bordetella is because of daycare, and without having a vet record, I don't know how I would prove that she is UTD if I gave it myself.

They're super easy to give and I personally wouldn't be concerned, unless they were being ordered from a shady place.

 

[Fran101]

Nah, but I know a few pre-vet students who do.

We do minimum vacs. So it's just rabies, and the parvo/distemper one.

 

[elegy]

Yes but I'm a vet tech so I just do it at work.

The thing that worries me with do-it-yourself vaccines is the frequency with which people overvaccinate, the questionable quality of the vaccines (some vaccines are far more prone to causing reactions and problems than others - what I would consider the "best" vaccines are not available in single doses from a feed store), and the unwillingness of owners to have their pets seen yearly for the exam part of the equation, which is really the most important part.

 

[Kat09Tails]

I vaccinate my own dogs, just like I used to vaccinate our livestock, compared to them dogs are easy. I place an order with a large pet warehouse with an exceptional shot safety handling record, they arrive in a sealed 25 pack, arrive overnight on cooling packs, and then they're stored in my fridge. Cost to me per puppy vax last time I ordered was $4.20 for the EXACT same shot of the exact same brand my vet would give. Because the laws are what they are I can't give rabies vaccines at home so we have to make a trip to a vet shot clinic for those. I donate any extras before the expiration date to the shelter which is happy to receive them. Shots are expensive. I still come out way ahead on cost even if I only manage to use 1/3 of them.

I found that it improved the quality of the relationship with my vet. It gives me far more control over vaccine schedules, types, and exposure.

 

[HayleyMarie]

I vaccinate myself.

Well I don't do it, but I get my SIL mother to do it because she is a nurse and after that I will get my SIL to do as she is going to school to become a vet tech or else I will just suck it up and do it myself.

I don't vaccinate every year though.

 

[MyHorseMyRules]

With the exception of rabies, I vaccinate my dogs myself.

 

[Specsy]

Is the only reason most of you don't vaccinate rabies yourself, because the state requires proof a vet did it? Or is there some other reason such as it being dangerous. I know the vaccination the breeder most does by herself IS the rabies vaccination.

The main reason I asked this question and started this thread was to find out if it was actually common practise as I am considering doing vaccinations myself. It is one huge stress/drama fest when I take my dogs and I am thinking it would just be so much easier if I could also do it myself or if there was something wrong with it.

 

[sky_baybee]

i dont vaccinate other than puppy shots.
i dont even do rabies unless i am going somewhere where i will need proof of rabies shot

 

[Kat09Tails]

Is the only reason most of you don't vaccinate rabies yourself, because the state requires proof a vet did it? Or is there some other reason such as it being dangerous. I know the vaccination the breeder most does by herself IS the rabies vaccination.

It is required by law here to be given by a vet. I have always wondered why it is required this way but I assume it has more to do with making sure the vaccine was actually done and current rather than just rely on the pet owner's word that the vaccine was done. After all your dog's life can depend on it since an unvaccinated dog is often killed, decapitated, and sent in for rapid testing if it happens to bite someone as part of rabies prevention protocol.

I would give rabies vax myself if I could. To order rabies vaccine it's incredibly cheap at about $1.50 a dose while my vet charges somewhere around $20-$35 a shot and the shot clinic is $15.

 

[LostAndConfused]

Growing up we always did vaccines at home, but my mom is a vet tech and would just get everything from the office and bring it home. In Ohio rabies must be done by a vet.

Another plus about dogs getting rabies from the vet is that we'd occasionally have people call in because they found a dog and the only tag it had was a rabies tag and we could look the owner information up.

 

[Specsy]

It isn't law that it has to be done by a vet here, our dogs don't even get rabies tags or anything to be honest. It is however required by law that rabies be done every 3 years HOWEVER, this isn't actually monitored as it should be unless you're travelling with your pet by airline etc, or if you are boarding to be honest. But I do suppose the only proof you did the rabies vaccine every 3 years would be that the vet signs it off on the vet card. Or I suppose if you could provide proof that you did it I guess. I don't actually KNOW that's why I asked. If I ask my vet I know she will say "a person should never vaccinate their own dogs etc" but that because she makes money out of us taking the dogs there for vaccinations obviously.

 

[MafiaPrincess]

Living in most states and provinces, it has to be given by a vet.. Living in South Africa I'd bet it's a little more lax.. If you go to buy the rabies vaccine, sites warn you of all the places it is illegal to DIY rabies on small animals or larger animals depending.

While it's the law to have it done every 1, 2 or 3 years depending upon where you live and how prevalent rabies is (I called AC about a suspected rabies coon a few years ago and was told the last rabies case they'd seen was 7 years prior, in a goat). No one really is checking that shots are done. It's an issue if a training facility wants to see it, or your dog bites another dog or person, or if you need a yearly city license, or you cross the border..

 

[Punkygirl0101]

All kittens I vaccinate myself, I get the vaccinations through the rescue (Which they get them from a vet).

As for puppies, I take them to an animal rescue that also has a low cost spay/neuter and vaccination clinic. I don't like doing puppies by myself lol, plus they can be afraid of the stranger rather than myself.

 

[puppydog]

Actually, the rabies vaccine is null and void if not administered by a vet. You cannot allow your dog to travel outside of South Africa or get it into kennels that require proof of vac.

I would NEVER do it. The Vangaurd5 and Rabisan are not very stable vaccines if taken out of cold storage for any length of time and it is not a good idea to administer them if you are not 100% sure that the cold chain has not been broken.