It’s Back! Feline Three Year Rabies Vaccine

We can finally recommend a new feline three year Rabies vaccine that will now be available in addition to the currently administered one year Rabies vaccine. Most importantly, this means that now cats will need two-thirds fewer Rabies immunizations over their lifetime, and that the many cats who are now reaching fourteen to fifteen years of age may need just one last immunization to be protected for life. Annual examinations are still recommended to promote maximal health and longevity. Because the three year vaccine costs us four times more than the one year vaccine, the client’s vaccine fee will be the same as three of the one year vaccines that would be currently given every year over three years.

The importance of maintaining Rabies protection for your pet and your family cannot be overstated, as western PA continues to be a wildlife, and occasionally a pet animal, Rabies hot spot. Clients ask me why their indoor cats should be immunized against Rabies. Aside from the fact that it is the law, every year we get numerous calls from pet owners whose pets catch bats and mice in their houses, thereby potentially also exposing the family. The following Rabies notifications I received today will illustrate this point:

A man in Elizabeth, PA was bitten in the thigh this week by a rabid coyote who charged him in his yard. A boy in Gibsonia this week got up during the night and stepped on a bat on the floor of his bedroom that was tested positive for Rabies. All summer long there have been reports of raccoons, groundhogs, bats, cats, dogs, and even tiny five week old stray kittens that have tested positive for Rabies.

***HUMIDITY AND HEAT ALERT***

All week we have been in the midst of a humidity and heat wave that can be a heat stroke risk for your pets. Please limit vigorous exercise for your dogs until the humidity subsides. Dogs don’t cool themselves by sweating as we do, so when humidity is very high, saliva does not evaporate off their tongues when they pant which is their main source of cooling. Even on slow walks this coming week, take some water and a collapsible bowl for frequent water breaks.

Pittsburgh Spay & Vaccination Clinic is a state-of-the-art, full-service suburban veterinary facility serving the Pittsburgh Area since 1980.. We offer diagnostic, medical, surgical, and dental care to dogs, cats, ferrets, rabbits, and pocket pets in the Pittsburgh area.

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