What is the recommendation of the lepto vaccine for dogs or for cats?
Can I get the lepto vaccine online?
I got my new dogs vaccinate for lepto because there are raccoons around. The initial vaccination was about $15 per dog, but the booster that is required a month or so later was almost $30. Do that sound right? So the booster is twice the cost of the initial vaccine?
Jeffers sells Solo-Jec 7 Plus (includes Leptospira bactererin) for $4.99 Says repeat at 3-4 weeks. Annual revaccination with a single dose. I would buy 2 doses for each dog.
Lepto has some warnings about reactions. Since your dog didn’t have adverse reactions, I’d do revaccination at home.
Sounds like the vet overcharged you by mistake. two dogs = $30 not 2 x $30
Thanks Hosspuller. I’ll order from them. I was disappointed with this vets office for a few things today. My great vets retired, and I’m looking for the right replacement. I liked this vet and her associate vet pretty well and thought they were keepers. I did not like the vet tech today.
The pricing sounds off to me too, but it is after the first of the year and who knows what the suppliers have changed markups to.
That said. I will almost guarantee you the vaccine used is far superior to the Solo Jec 7. It only covers for two strains of lepto, you should be getting at least 4, sometimes 5. Plus assuming you only need a lepto booster then why bombard the immune system with 5 other unnecessary components? It’s also often reccomeded to separate lepto from the other vaccines to help avoid and track reactions.
If you like the vet and associate, I would at least call the office and talk to them about why you disliked the tech. Who knows, she could be a fill in/temp, or they’ve been monitoring her attitudes/behavior from other complaints. At least make sure you’re not throwing the baby out with the bath water.
Lepto is the only vaccine I give every year. Try to get the vet to work with you on the price. I agree, something is not right with the pricing.
If you have ever seen a dog with lepto (I have), you’d pay anything to get the vaccine. I just wish that there was a lepto vaccine for horses. Deer urine, rat urine, etc., can ruin a horse or dog. And yes, there are different strains of lepto, but you should get the vaccine to eliminate those strains that it protects against.
Well, two of the three have had both of the lepto vaccines. They failed to schedule the third and I’m inclined to give her the Jeffers one myself for a few reasons.
She was pushy with people, insulting, pushy with the dog and my dogs are not ready for that yet.
Soooo, I’ll give the remaining dog a shot myself and think about the vet clinic later. We have some good vets in the area - and a vet tech with the wrong values raises concerns about the values of the entire clinic - and that is what it comes down to to me - the values of the vet and clinic. I’m getting more annoyed with them rather than less and that’s not good - and it isn’t about the money for the shots as that could be a mistake. It is about all the things that she said about various things - really not on the same value plane as I am.
Usually the booster includes a pre-treatment of Benadryl because of the associated allergic reactions to it. I would never booster at home. If your dog has an anaphylactic shock reaction at home - it may not survive the trip to the vet clinic.
Our old booster protocol was to have the patient come in for a Benadryl injection, wait 15 minutes then booster with lepto vaccine. Then, have clients wait 30 minutes in waiting room, reassess heart rate and blood pressure before leaving to go home. Most of the serious reactions occur within the first 30 minutes. Its more often the minor reactions that can happen up to 24 hours later.
To me, its not worth the risk for saving $15 bucks.
OP- I think it’s unfair to assume the clinic is ok with that kind of behavior from their techs if you don’t talk to someone about it. Maybe noone has told them yet that the tech is pushy and condescending.
I keep a flat of vaccines at home for my guys and for various fosters that migrate through. I will not do lepto at home. Too risky for my liking.
[QUOTE=SquishTheBunny;7362110]
Usually the booster includes a pre-treatment of Benadryl because of the associated allergic reactions to it. I would never booster at home. If your dog has an anaphylactic shock reaction at home - it may not survive the trip to the vet clinic.
Our old booster protocol was to have the patient come in for a Benadryl injection, wait 15 minutes then booster with lepto vaccine. Then, have clients wait 30 minutes in waiting room, reassess heart rate and blood pressure before leaving to go home. Most of the serious reactions occur within the first 30 minutes. Its more often the minor reactions that can happen up to 24 hours later.
To me, its not worth the risk for saving $15 bucks.[/QUOTE]
Sigh…it’s not about the money - $30 for each booster. It’s about everything else that happened and everything that she said where she thought she was impressing us - just different values.
They didn’t do anything like you describe. My old vet and I did things like that for my cats, but there was nothing like that here - it was supposed to be a five minute in and out. No bendryl, no discussion of potential reactions, no suggesting we stay close, nothing like that at all.
I have had anaphylactic reactions in both horses and cats - both with vaccines given by my old vets. For the cats (who were related ferals) we always did the prophylactic benedryl or prednisone.
Neither time in giving this vaccine (kennel cough, lepto and distemper for the first with a booster for the lepto) did the vet I dealt with take any prophylactic measures or suggest that there might be anaphylaxis or any other reaction. One vet, on the first day (when I wasn’t present) did mention that there was a possibilty of a reaction but that it was not to be expected.
So, I’ll get the booster for dog number three, but use a different vet, I think.
As always, I really appreciate the information.
[QUOTE=Horsegal984;7362163]
OP- I think it’s unfair to assume the clinic is ok with that kind of behavior from their techs if you don’t talk to someone about it. Maybe noone has told them yet that the tech is pushy and condescending.
I keep a flat of vaccines at home for my guys and for various fosters that migrate through. I will not do lepto at home. Too risky for my liking.[/QUOTE]
I think you are right on the lepto booster. I did not know it was a particularly risky vaccine. I had read a little on it, but didn’t see that information. Thank you for your advice and opinion. I appreciate it.
[QUOTE=SquishTheBunny;7362110]
Usually the booster includes a pre-treatment of Benadryl because of the associated allergic reactions to it. I would never booster at home. If your dog has an anaphylactic shock reaction at home - it may not survive the trip to the vet clinic.
Our old booster protocol was to have the patient come in for a Benadryl injection, wait 15 minutes then booster with lepto vaccine. Then, have clients wait 30 minutes in waiting room, reassess heart rate and blood pressure before leaving to go home. Most of the serious reactions occur within the first 30 minutes. Its more often the minor reactions that can happen up to 24 hours later.
To me, its not worth the risk for saving $15 bucks.[/QUOTE]
Interesting… I’ve never heard of a vet doing that before.
Though we don’t booster for anything unless titers come back low.
mommy peanut, we did do almost that exact protocol for my cats because that family of cats was very sensitive to vaccines.
Just to clarify, I’ve never worked for a vet that’s recommended or used The protocol that Squish’s clinic uses. However we do separate it from other vaccines and have the owners hang around, or do that first thing in the visit, so they’re still there if the pup does have a reaction. Lyme and lepto are the “big two” for us, we like to discuss risk factors with owners and educate them well on the risks before vaccination.
Leptospirosis is one of the vaccines notorious for having some of the worst anaphylactic reactions associated with giving it - and the less purified vaccines are more likely to cause reactions. It’s really safest for it to be given at a veterinarian’s office. However, if you aren’t going to do that at least try to do it the right way. 1) Give your dog Benadyl before the vaccine to try and prevent a crisis at home. While serious reactions are rare, if it happens at home and not at an office your dog could die. 2) Avoid the “5-way” vaccines - the more antigens you give, the more likely you are to get a reaction. It sounds like your dog doesn’t need the others anyway! 3) Use one of the vaccines likely to work. Even the best lepto vaccines aren’t perfect, so use one that gives him a good chance at being protected. The lepto vaccines used most by veterinarians are the ones made by Merial or Boehringer Ingelheim.
http://www.duramunelepto.com/
http://us.merial.com/merial_corporate/news/press_releases/08-02-2010_Recombitek_Lepto4.asp
[QUOTE=In The Gate;7362543]
Leptospirosis is one of the vaccines notorious for having some of the worst anaphylactic reactions associated with giving it - and the less purified vaccines are more likely to cause reactions. It’s really safest for it to be given at a veterinarian’s office. However, if you aren’t going to do that at least try to do it the right way. 1) Give your dog Benadyl before the vaccine to try and prevent a crisis at home. While serious reactions are rare, if it happens at home and not at an office your dog could die. 2) Avoid the “5-way” vaccines - the more antigens you give, the more likely you are to get a reaction. It sounds like your dog doesn’t need the others anyway! 3) Use one of the vaccines likely to work. Even the best lepto vaccines aren’t perfect, so use one that gives him a good chance at being protected. The lepto vaccines used most by veterinarians are the ones made by Merial or Boehringer Ingelheim.
http://www.duramunelepto.com/
http://us.merial.com/merial_corporate/news/press_releases/08-02-2010_Recombitek_Lepto4.asp[/QUOTE]
Thanks. I did say my previous post that I would have a different vet give it. However, it is interesting that when I mentioned doing it myself at the vet clinic she didn’t indicate that it is a dangerous shot. Another reason that I’m not happy with the vet clinic.
I’m rethinking having this third dog boosted at all. The dogs who are most likely to encounter anything carrying the virus received their booster. At least for this year, this bc isn’t going to be out and about.
Thanks for the info on the vaccs.
As always, COTH members have been very informative and helpful. Thanks everyone!
OK, I guess I still have another question. It has more to do with what causes the anaphylactic reaction. It seems to me that the vet clinic did not anticipate any reaction with the booster. It didn’t mention to me any potential for a reaction with the initial vaccination, but we did hang around and talk afterwards - which may have been her way of making sure the dogs were alright before we left. She didn’t “say” it, but maybe that was what she was doing.
The booster, though, was just given by a vet tech who said it would be very quick and we left immediately afterwards with no cautionary advice.
Is the initial booster, and subsequent boosters, less likely to cause a serious reaction?
Reaction is rare…its not like 5 in 20 react. However, life threatening reactions to parvo vaccine is (im guessing here) 1 in 10,000 where as lepto would be 1 in 1,000.
Its similar to people and penicillin - first shot you are ok. Next shot you can have severe reaction.
I am surprised your vet would say to administer at home, but some would feel its better to have it done at home than not at all.
I have performed CPR twice on a dog post lepto vaccine. Thankfully both survived. They both reacted about 20 minutes post vaccine. I think in the 10 years of working at the clinic, those were the only two serious reactions (lots of mild ones).
I believe reactions can occur at any time, but its often the booster after the initial vaccination that causes most reactions. I could be wrong.
Dogs only need to be boostered if they have never had the vaccine before (other than #1). Generally, its vaccinate then booster 2-6 weeks later. Then annual (or every 6 month) booster after that.
Best time to vaccinate is at the end of the winter and end of summer (location specific). Its quite rare to see lepto cases when its frozen out (no puddles to drink from) or in the dead of summer where its dry. The wet seasons are the ones most important.
There was no vet, only the two vet techs. It came up with another dog I took in who is too traumatized to bring in until we work with him so his vaccination for that does fit with the “if not by me, not at all” category but I’m thinking that he doesn’t need it at all as he will be contained in the yard. Then it just expanded to the booster for the one dog that they didn’t schedule for a booster.
Our property has flowing creeks year round, and the weather is moderate enough that it’s a good thing that the two who have had the booster have that protection. They are the two that go out with us a lot. The other two aren’t going to be out like that for awhile so it’s not a big concern really.
It’s really good to know that the booster probably is even more risky than the initial shot, and certainly not less risky.
Thank you again!
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