How Often Do Dogs Need Rabies Shots?

how often do dogs need rabies shots

Petting a dog is a full-time job and huge responsibility that you must not neglect at any cost. Your dog needs vaccination the way it needs proper food and bathing essentials. Vaccination is an integral part of petting animals, especially cats and dogs. You can save your dog from various diseases that might become life-threatening for your dog and you as well. Therefore vaccinating your dog at the right time can save it!

Being a responsible and careful pet owner, you have to take care of your dog as a family member. It is only you who can prevent your dog from catching illnesses that are always waiting for your dog’s immunity to decline so that they can attack your pet. However, you can stop the occurrence of illness and consequent hazards by getting your dog vaccinated according to the proposed schedules.

This article provides you with valuable and helpful information regarding dog’s core and non-vaccinations, what Rabies is and how often dogs need Rabies shots. So, let’s get started!

What are core and non-core vaccinations for dogs?

There are two types of vaccinations available for your dog, the core vaccines, which are essential, and your dog must get these. on the contrary, there are non-core vaccines that your dog needs only when exposed to a high-risk environment. Let’s have a light on the core and non-core vaccines;

The 5-in-1 DHPP vaccine

Also referred to as ‘distemper‘ shot, it is a 5-in1 vaccine available for your dog, which protects it from five life-threatening viruses. The vaccine includes protection against distemper, two types of hepatitis viruses, parvovirus and parainfluenza virus.

It is a core vaccine, which means all dogs must receive the shots as per schedule. According to the proposed schedule, you need to get the DHPP’s 1st shot at 8th week of life, 2nd shot at 12th week, 3rd shot at 16th week, 4th shot at 1st year of life, and then every three years.

If you follow the schedule mentioned above for DHPP, your dog’s chances of growing up healthy increase a lot!

Rabies vaccine

Another core vaccine that your dog must receive is the Rabies vaccine. It protects your dog from catching an illness that almost turns out to be deadly for dogs. The Rabies disease, caused by the Rabies virus, damages your dog’s nervous system and tends to spread to other animals and even humans. Therefore, vaccinating your dog against the Rabies virus is very important, and we cannot emphasize this enough!

According to the usual Rabies vaccine timetable that everyone follows, your dog needs Rabies shot at the 16th week of life, then one year later (from the 1st dose) and then after every 3 years.

Vaccines for Leptospirosis, Bordetella, Influenza

Besides, Rabies and Distemper, your puppy is always vulnerable to various common illnesses among dogs. Besides, since a puppy is very small, like a human newborn, the immune system is not well enough to combat diseases. Therefore, vaccines are essential!

The other important vaccines available for dogs aim to protect them against Leptospirosis, Bordetella and Influenza.

Besides, it would be best to get the canine-specific vaccines for your dogs because other than DHPP, all other vaccines are also available for feline specific cats.

As per the routine schedule, if your puppy/dog lives in a multiple-dog environment, it needs the doses every year after birth. First, however, you must consider speaking to your vet about your dog’s health and living conditions.

What is rabies? – A better understanding

Rabies is one of the deadly diseases among mammals, including bats, raccoons, humans, dogs, skunks etc. the developed countries have somehow managed to eradicate the disease. However, the developing countries encounter many Rabies cases every day owing to many unvaccinated dogs. Mostly, the virus causing Rabies attacks cats and dogs. Moreover, the disease is highly contagious and spreads through the saliva of the infected animal.

The sign and symptoms of Rabies may vary; however, mostly, your dog shows up with the fear of water, fear of light, lethargy, irritated, headaches and in later stages, it might suffer from seizures. If the disease goes untreated, most of the dogs die secondary to coma. Besides, the disease is life-threatening for animals and humans, who suffer from the same signs and symptoms after catching the disease.

Therefore, it is extremely crucial to get your dogs and cats vaccinated with Rabies beforehand if you live in a developing country and believe your pet may get exposed to the virus at any time. Vaccinating your dog against the Rabies virus will also protect you against the deadly illness.

Are there any specific dogs that require the rabies vaccine?

As mentioned earlier, Rabies comes under the category of core/essential vaccines. Therefore, your dog needs to have all the core vaccines as per schedule. Long story cut short; you can consider that all the dogs out there need to get vaccinated against the Rabies virus. The administration of the vaccine does not depend on risk exposure. Hence, there is no specificity!

How Often Do Dogs Need Rabies Shots?

If your dog is above 12 weeks of age, you can consider its vaccination against Rabies. However, vets usually do not recommend administering vaccines in puppies younger than 12 weeks of age as it may bring troubles along.

We have already mentioned the Rabies vaccine schedule earlier in the article. However, the rules and regulations may vary from country to country and city to city. Moreover, your dog’s health condition also matters when it comes to vaccination.

Related Articles

In conclusion

As soon as you begin to own a dog, you start considering them a family and therefore, you have to take care of your dog. Therefore, it is your utmost responsibility to get your dog vaccinated as per the given timetables. Even if it gets exposed to deadly pathogens (disease-causing agents), it is always ready to combat!

Rabies is a dangerous disease, and you must protect your dog from the Rabies virus by getting it vaccinated as soon as it grows above 12 weeks of age. In this article, we have tried our best to explain Rabies, the importance of getting a Rabies vaccine for dogs and How Often Do Dogs Need Shots! Hopefully, it will prove helpful!

Source
https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/puppy-shots-complete-guide/

About The Author

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top
0 Shares
Share
Pin
Tweet