We Now Have Anti-Vaccination Dog Parents! What You Need to Know

We Now Have Anti-Vaccination Dog Parents! What You Need to Know

To vaccinate or not to vaccinate has always been a huge point of debate. And at first glance, it looks so straightforward. Vaccination helps our bodies develop immunity for diseases that would otherwise be detrimental to our health. Why would anyone be against it?

Well, because they are worried about the long term implications of that vaccine and all the potential ways the process could go wrong. There is no proof that human vaccination leads to conditions such as Autism, a popular argument by anti-vaxxers, but that has not helped weaken their resolve against the process. And now the debate has spilled over to the dog world.

There is an increasing number of dog parents that have consciously made the decision not to vaccinate their pups. Veterinarian Brian McKenzie who is also the former president of the Evidence-Based veterinary medicine association attributes this shift to the preservation that already exists against human vaccination.

He says, “over the last 10 or 15 years, there has been an increase in mostly unfounded concerns about vaccine safety for people — and that, I think, has raised people’s awareness and level of concern about vaccinations for their pets.”

There is also the issue of some veterinarians warning dog parents about vaccination. They are especially against combination vaccines or combo shots which aim to prevent multiple health risks at once. These vets don’t like how the combo shots remain effective for disparate periods. For instance, the lepto portion of the combo shot remains effective for a year while the parainfluenza works for three years.

They then argue that administering the vaccine repeatedly makes the dog susceptible to conditions such as skin disease and autoimmune diseases. However, Christopher Brockett, president of the New York State Veterinary society isn’t very enthusiastic about anti-vaccination.

“The fewer animals that are getting the vaccine, the greater the likelihood that you’re going to have a firestorm if something that is that highly communicable comes along.” He says.

Tell me, what do you think is best for your pup?

Feature Image Source: Pixabay

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