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Vaccination against the main infectious diseases is the best prevention. Dog vaccines can be classified into mandatory and optional, although this may vary depending on geographical location. A good state of health of the dog and a mature immune system are important.
Puppies are usually vaccinated from 12 weeks or even earlier. Normally, when a puppy is bought, it is usually delivered with the health card and at least the first dose of vaccine. A puppy that is not vaccinated should not have any contact with other dogs, to avoid the spread of infections. Depending on the breed, geographical area in which we live, utility of the dog (company, beauty contests, etc.), the type of vaccine will vary.
If you want to know more about mandatory dog vaccines, download this complete guide on dog vaccines for free.
On the other hand, after vaccination of dogs, a decrease in cellular immunity mediated by T cells and a transient state of immunosuppression have been described. Despite this, dogs continue to be vaccinated with live polyvalent vaccines and serious illness does not generally occur. This is supported by data provided by a study of the immune system and vaccines, since the response to vaccination seems to only create a state of altered homeostasis when protection from cellular and humoral immunity is required. For this reason, vaccines must be applied to completely healthy animals and the recommendations must be strictly followed.
Dog Vaccination Schedule
Mandatory vaccines in dogs protect against canine distemper virus and parvovirus and rabies. Optional vaccines protect against leptospirosis, parainfluenza, kennel cough caused by bordetella, Lyme disease and coronavirus. Vaccination against leishmaniasis is also optional. (For more information on canine leishmaniasis download this article from the Affinity group.
A vaccine that is optional in one country may be mandatory in another where the disease is common. This is the basic vaccination schedule for dogs in Mexico:
- At 6 weeks: First set of vaccines
- At 8 weeks: quintuple
- At 12 weeks: Reminder of the quintuple
- At 16 weeks: Rabies
- Annually: Reminder of the quintuple and rabies
The most common vaccines are the puppy, quintuple and rabies. The puppy vaccine typically contains the canine distemper, infectious canine hepatitis, and leptospirosis vaccines. The quintuple vaccine contains the same as the puppy vaccine and the canine parvovirus vaccine is added. The most basic quintuple vaccine, in addition to what the previous ones contain, also has the vaccine against kennel cough and against the canine coronavirus.
