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East End Veterinary Medical Centre

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Dog Diseases

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Facts About Vaccinations

  • Vaccinations are dead, inactive, or modified disease agents that cause the immune system to produce antibodies and “memory cells” specific to the disease.

  • Vaccination is the best way to prepare a pet’s immune system to stop infections when the “real” disease strikes.

  • The benefits of vaccination greatly outweigh the risks.

  • Vaccines have saved the lives of millions upon millions of cats and dogs

Dog receiving a vaccination

East End Veterinary Medical Centre Vaccination Protocol

DHPP: Beginning at 6 weeks of age, initial vaccines will be given and continued every 3-4 weeks until 16 weeks of age. A booster will be given one year later and then every 3 years thereafter.

Rabies: An initial vaccination will be given at 12-13 weeks of age. A booster will be given one year later and then every 3 years thereafter.

Leptospirosis (4-Way): An initial vaccination will be given at 12-13 weeks of age. A booster vaccination will be given 3-4 weeks later and then yearly thereafter.

Bordetella (Intranasal): (Optional) Given every 6-12 months. (At least 1-2 weeks prior to boarding.)

Lyme: (Optional) An initial vaccination is given at 12-16 weeks of age. A booster will be given 3-4 weeks later and then yearly thereafter.

Influenza: An initial vaccination can be given at 8 weeks of age. A booster vaccination will be given 3-4 weeks later and then yearly thereafter.

*We Recommend Doing A 4DX/Insect Borne Disease Test Every Year **

Today’s Dog Disease Threats

Respiratory Diseases

  • Distemper

  • Hepatitis

  • Parainfluenza

  • Kennel Cough

Enteric Diseases

  • Parvovirus/Coronavirus

Vector-Borne Diseases:

  • Lyme Disease

  • Ehrlichia Canis

  • West Nile

Water-Borne Diseases

  • Leptospirosis

  • Giardia

Giardia Zoonotic Diseases

  • Rabies

  • Leptospirosis

White dog looking out window with flowers next to it

Heartworm Disease

What are the signs of heartworm disease?

The signs vary according to the number of worms present, stage of life cycle, age, and species of host. The heartworms live primarily in the right side of the heart and lung, and can cause significant damage and even death.

***We Recommend Heartworm Prevention All Year Round

***We recommend doing an Insect Borne Disease Test (aka 4Dx) that takes only 8 minutes to analyze and get the results. All we need is a small sample of your pets blood.

The 4 Diseases that we are checking for are:

  • Ehrlichia: Caused by brown dog tick

  • Lyme: Caused by ticks or coming in contact with deer/wild rodents

  • Heartworm: Caused by infected mosquito’s

  • Anaplasma: Caused by ticks

Dogs are the natural host for heartworms. Dogs can become infected after an infected mosquito bites them. Once infected, the larval stages of the heartworm make their way through the tissues to eventually reach the heart and pulmonary arteries. This migration can take 3-4 months. Once in the heart and pulmonary arteries, the larvae mature into adults. This maturation can also take several months. Adult heartworms can reach up to 14 inches in length. Once mature, adult male and female worms reproduce (if both male and females present), and the female worms will produce microfilaria that are released and circulate in the bloodstream. The cycle begins again when a mosquito takes a blood feeding from an infected dog. Once inside the mosquito, the microfilaria incubate, and after a few weeks of warm weather, the mosquito can bite and infect another dog or cat.

The severity of heartworm in dogs is directly correlated with the number of worms or “worm burden”, i.e the greater the number of worms, the worse the disease. The parasites can cause respiratory and heart disease, with coughing and exercise intolerance as the most obvious clinical symptoms. If untreated, heartworm disease leads to congestive heart failure and death.

Heartworm infection can be treated, but treatment is expensive and risky for the pet. The treatment involves giving a chemical compound, melarsomine, which kills the worms. When the worms die, they are released into the bloodstream and pumped from the heart to the lungs. The dead worms become foreign material in the lungs to which the dog’s immune system must react. This process carries risks. If there are large numbers of worms that die all at once, the dog can suffer severe distress leading to respiratory and cardiac arrest. The most recent protocol for treatment of heartworm disease involves giving the melarsomine in 3 injections, in intervals designed to decrease the potential for causing distress to the dog. During this process, the dog is kept confined for 1 month or longer.

At EEVMC, we follow the American Heartworm Society guidelines by recommending annual screenings for Heartworm disease. The test, called “4dx”, requires a few drops of blood, takes 10 minutes to get results, and also screens for tick diseases such as Lyme disease, Ehrlichiosis, and Anaplasmosis.

Heartworm can be prevented with a monthly preventative. Here is a list of some heartworm preventatives currently available:

  • Heartgard Plus oral chewable tablets

  • Interceptor Plus oral chewable tablets

  • Revolution Topical Solution

  • Advantage Multi Topical Solution

  • Trifexis Oral Chewable Tablets

Dogs should be started on heartworm prevention prior to 6 months of age. If they are older than 6 months of age when starting, they should be tested for heartworm disease with the 4dx test prior to starting the preventative.

More information on heartworm disease is available at: www.heartwormsociety.org

Note: Some of the information and language on Heartworm Disease above has been obtained from the website of Dr. Lisa Bennett, DVM- Beaver Lake Animal Hospital, Issaquah, WA.

Common Questions:

Why do we recommend year round prevention if the mosquito population disappears in the cold weather?

There are several reasons why we recommend year round prevention. First, almost all of the heartworm preventatives are also effective gastro-intestinal dewormers. Dogs are commonly exposed to gastro-intestinal parasites in the environment, such as roundworms, hookworms, and whipworms, especially if they graze on grass or eat feces. Monthly prevention keeps these common exposures from preventing serious disease. Second, many of our clients travel with their pets to the south Atlantic coast in the fall and winter. This area is a year-round hotbed of heartworm disease, so it is critically important to make sure dogs visiting these areas are on a monthly preventative. Third, because of the recent global warming trends, the winter range of mosquitoes may be spreading northward. Since heartworm infection can cause such severe disease, it is best to play it safe and keep dogs on preventative year round.

Why do we recommend annual screening for heartworm if dogs are on year-round prevention?

First, no preventative is 100% effective. There have been some recent reports in Texas suggesting that the heartworm parasite may be developing some resistance to the preventatives we have been using for decades. In the rare incident of prevention failure, we want to be sure we catch heartworm disease early so treatment will carry less risk. Second, as mentioned previously, the 4dx screening test also screens for tick diseases. It is helpful for us to know if your dog has been exposed to Lyme, Ehrlichia, or Anaplasma, so we can recommend the proper course of action.

Brown dog getting pets

Parvovirus

Parvovirus (also called “Parvo”) is highly infectious and causes diarrhea (sometimes bloody), vomiting, lethargy, weakness, and fever. The virus attacks the intestinal lining causing both diarrhea and vomiting.

Diarrhea can be mild or sever and even fatal. Diarrhea in an otherwise bright, alert, eating, drinking dog is more likely due to diet change, stress, parasites, than to parvovirus.

The virus is very contagious and is spread by exposure to feces. Unfortunately, dogs from shelters often have been exposed to parvovirus and should be observed for 14 days after adoption to be sure they are not incubating the virus.

There is some risk that a dog incubating parvovirus will infect other dogs. The new dog and its feces should be kept away from puppies and unvaccinated dogs for 2 weeks. Dogs that have had at least two vaccines, with the last one at least 2 weeks prior to exposure to an infected dog are fairly protected.

If you suspect your dog has parvo, call your vet as soon as possible. The earlier the infection is diagnosed and treated with fluids, antibiotics, and nursing care, the more likely it is to do well.

Gray and white dog smiling

There are many ways for pets to be exposed to disease-causing organisms. Healthy appearing animals can spread viruses and bacteria. You could unknowingly carry disease-causing organisms to a pet on hands, clothing, or shoes. When such exposures occur, a pet’s immune system needs to be prepared. Vaccinating your pet as recommended by your veterinarian can protect him/her from serious illness or death.