I have written many times about the use of vaccine titers to see if a pet needs a particular vaccine. Just to be sure we’re all on the same page I thought I’d take this opportunity to explain titers in more detail. A titer is a blood test that measures the amount of antibodies for […]
I would like to start 2016 by keeping it simple. Over the years I’ve written about research and my own experience that informs my views on pet health care. I’ve been working in the veterinary field for over 30 years with more than 20 years of holistic/integrative practice. I would like to sum it up […]
Vaccine research from the November 15th Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association confirms what I wrote about here. Small dogs are more likely to suffer adverse reactions to vaccines than larger dogs. The current study gives more specifics. It turns out dogs who weigh less than 10 lbs are 7 times more likely to […]
Most veterinarians are out of touch. That’s the conclusion of a new study. Recently, a consumer research company looked at over 2 million conversations about pet care that appeared in online forums, on blogs, and on Facebook in 2014. They found that for veterinarians, “preventive care” was all about vaccines, spay/neuter, and parasite control. Meanwhile, […]
In my last blog I gave the background for chronic kidney disease (CKD). Now let’s look at possible causes and treatments. Studies show an association between the feline distemper vaccine and CKD. It turns out that the viruses used in the vaccine are grown on feline kidney tissue cultures. While the vaccinated cat’s immune system […]
Isn’t there a special rabies vaccine for cats that does not cause vaccine sarcoma cancer? Yes, and no. There is a line of vaccines (Purevax from Merial) that was developed with vaccine sarcoma cancer in mind. When vaccine sarcoma cancer was first recognized in the 1980s, it was thought that the adjuvants in the vaccine […]
I have a few more thoughts on vaccines that I gained from the recent I took to pass on. In my last post I mentioned a 2005 vaccine study. It showed that the smaller the dog, the more likely it is to have a vaccine reaction. One more nugget from this study was available from […]
I recently attended a veterinary vaccine program and was able to have many of my questions answered. For example, I have always wondered why 1 cc of vaccine was considered suitable for every dog, no matter what the size – from a ½ pound Chihuahua puppy to a 150 pound Great Dane. How is it […]
The canine influenza virus has been making a run lately. It started in the Chicago area and has now spread to more than a dozen states. With the mobility of our society and our desire to bring our dogs along, vacation season means the canine flu will most likely continue to spread. Here are a […]
In a previous post I mentioned my encounter with a veterinarian (Dr. EBM) who argued with me all though a presentation on holistic medicine I gave at a veterinary conference. He loudly found fault with just about everything I said. For instance, as a case example of the tendency of veterinarians to over-vaccinate our patients, […]