How often should you vaccinate your pet? Annually is not always the answer

By Kim Campbell Thornton

How often do you have your dog or cat vaccinated? If you're still following an annual schedule, you may want to reconsider.

Vaccines save lives; there's no doubt about it. They teach the immune system to recognize and fight off invading organisms that cause severe and sometimes fatal diseases, such as distemper and parvovirus.

But vaccinating too often brings potential health risks. Vaccine reactions are rare, but they include mild itching or swelling; vaccine sarcomas -- cancer at the injection site -- diagnosed in as many as 20,000 cats per year; autoimmune hemolytic anemia in dogs; and anaphylactic shock leading to death.

Veterinarians have suspected for years that annual vaccinations for cats and dogs aren't necessary, but large-scale, well-controlled duration-of-immunity studies didn't exist to prove it one way or the other. Now, however, published studies have shown that immunity provided by canine and feline core vaccines lasts for at least three years and often for a pet's lifetime.

What does this mean for your dog or cat? Instead of a one-size-fits-all recommendation, your pet's vaccination schedule should be tailored to his individual needs, based on factors such as age, health status and prevalence of disease in your area. In most cases, though, the fewer and less frequent vaccinations received, the better.

Most pets need only what are known as core vaccines. They protect against the most common and most serious diseases. In dogs, the core vaccines are distemper, parvovirus, hepatitis and rabies. (Most states require dogs be vaccinated for rabies every three years.) In cats, core vaccines are panleukopenia, calicivirus, rhinotracheitis (herpesvirus) and rabies (if required by law).

For puppies and kittens, current recommendations are to begin immunizations no earlier than 6 to 8 weeks of age and repeat them every three to four weeks until the animal is 16 to 20 weeks old. To reduce the risk of maternal antibodies interfering with the vaccines, the final dose is usually administered when a pet is 14 to 16 weeks or older, followed by a booster vaccination at 1 year.

After that, pets can be revaccinated every three years. An alternative to triennial vaccinations is titers every three years. Titers, tests that determine whether the body has antibodies to disease, are reliable, and costs are typically comparable to those for vaccinations.

Titers don't measure whether antibody levels are "high" or "low."

"Any measurable titer to a specific antigen means you've got immune memory cells for that antigen," says veterinary immunology expert Jean Dodds, DVM.

Work with your veterinarian to determine which vaccinations are appropriate for your dog or cat, based on lifestyle and risk. For instance, outdoor cats benefit from the non-core vaccine for feline leukemia because they have a greater chance of exposure to the disease. On the dog side, a dog in Pennsylvania or Wisconsin who hikes in the woods frequently with his owner may be a candidate for the non-core Lyme disease vaccine, unlike a dog who lives in a high-rise in Chicago.

Those non-core vaccines, recommended only for animals at high risk, are the exception to the "every three years" rule.

"If they're not given annually, then immunity really will be lost," says Ronald Schultz, DVM, an internal medicine specialist and professor of pathobiological sciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine in Madison. "Those non-core vaccines don't cause the immune system to maintain immunologic memory."

Finally, just because your pet doesn't need annual vaccinations doesn't mean you can skip an annual exam for him. Pets age more rapidly than humans, and an annual exam is important for catching problems early.

Q&A

The scoop on

dogs eating poop

Q: My dog, a healthy 13-year-old male German shepherd-bluetick coonhound mix, loves to eat stool droppings like candy. We live next to a conservation area with trails where others walk their dogs leash-free, as do we. He never eats any fresh droppings but finds dried ones to eat. I have done everything to stop him, short of putting him on a leash. Do I worry needlessly? -- via email

A: There's a name for that not-so-charming habit: coprophagy. It comes from the Greek words "copros," for "feces," and "phagein," meaning "to eat." For dogs and other species, it can be a natural behavior, but to humans, it's distasteful -- to say the least. Who wants to be kissed with that mouth?

We don't know exactly why animals dig poop, but we do know a few things about the tasteless habit. It's more common in dogs than in cats, and it's more common in females than in males. It's possible that females do it because it's normal for them to clean up after their pups in this way.

One theory as to why dogs eat poop is that they do it out of stress or boredom. Some people suggest that dogs who do this are lacking certain nutrients in their diet or aren't getting enough to eat. Dogs who have been scolded for pooping in the house may be attempting to hide the evidence of new transgressions. The behavior may also be in response to an underlying medical cause.

Besides the yuck factor, eating poop can result in a case of intestinal parasites. And if your dog snacks on manure from a horse recently treated with ivermectin, a common deworming agent, he could become sick.

Take him to the veterinarian to make sure the cause isn't health-related. Otherwise, since your dog seems to only eat poop that he finds on the trail, the easiest solution may be to fit him with a basket muzzle if you're unwilling to keep him on leash. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

Food truck for

Fido in Seattle

-- The food truck craze has gone to the dogs. The Seattle Barkery, owned and operated by Ben and Dawn Ford, rolls out such popular pet treats as air-fried chicken feet and duck neck, bacon "pupcakes," a canine ice-cream sundae -- served in an edible bowl with bacon sprinkles -- and a peanut butter and banana bone, to name just a few. Ingredients are, of course, human-grade and frequently organic. Humans can order their own separate treats -- and coffee, because this is Seattle -- but dogs are the primary customers.

-- The leading infectious cause of death in young cats is feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), caused by a virulent feline coronavirus. A vaccine for FIP is available, but it has little to no efficacy and isn't recommended by the American Association of Feline Practitioners. But a new treatment reported by Kansas State University researchers in the journal PLoS ONE may block the virus from replicating and stop the disease from progressing. The cats in their study recovered fully after treatment with an experimental antiviral. The authors report, "We found that antiviral treatment led to full recovery of cats when treatment was started at a stage of disease that would be otherwise fatal if left untreated."

-- Lucca, a U.S. Marine Corps German shepherd, saved thousands of lives through her patrol work in Afghanistan, where her job was to sniff out explosives. Where she was on the job, no human casualties occurred. But on her final patrol, she discovered a 30-pound bomb. During the search for additional explosive devices, one detonated. Lucca survived, but at the cost of her left front leg. Now she has become the first Marine Corps dog to receive the Dickin Medal, an award for animal bravery in wartime service created in 1943 by animal welfare pioneer Maria Dickin. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

Their keen senses, curiosity and observational skills make dogs and cats perfect partners in the fictional pursuit of crime

By Kim Campbell Thornton

Cozy or noir? Thriller or mystery? Talking cat or working dog?

Whatever your poison in literary murder and mayhem, there's a book for you. And chances are good that a dog or cat is a character in his own right, either as a four-footed detective or as a sidekick to a human protagonist. Think Lilian Jackson Braun's Siamese sleuths Koko and Yum Yum, who first made an appearance some 50 years ago; or feline Mrs. Murphy, her Persian nemesis Pewter and their corgi buddy Tee Tucker in the Mrs. Murphy series by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown.

Editors and agents used to tell authors that a "pet viewpoint" worked only for children's books, but from Braun on, writers have proven them wrong.

"It takes having a well-known and successful 'name' author to take the plunge and show it's something readers like before it becomes a trend," says Amy Shojai, author of three thrillers featuring German shepherd service dog Shadow. "James Rollins (a veterinarian-turned-writer) was one of the first best-selling thriller authors to include an animal viewpoint in his work, with a war dog partnered with an ex-military man. Robert Crais followed with a similar war dog-type character partnered with a damaged-cop character."

In her own series, Shojai, drawing on her background as a behavior consultant, wanted a viewpoint dog character with some chapters told from his perspective.

"Not as a human-in-a-fur-suit, but as I perceived a dog might truly think and behave and with motivations suitable to a canine," she says.

Shojai's fellow author Clea Simon has written 20 mysteries, all featuring cats. Simon began her career as a journalist, and along the way she realized she could combine her love of writing with her interest in and appreciation for cats. Her third nonfiction book, "The Feline Mystique," explored the relationship between women and cats.

"That was sort of the kickoff for my cat-related mysteries," she says.

At first, Simon went the traditional route. In her first series, featuring music journalist Theda Krakow and her cat Musetta, cats didn't talk -- at least, not in English.

"But after that, I realized that we all talk to our pets, and we all imagine how our animals respond," she says.

That led her to explore different ways of including a cat's viewpoint. One is her Dulcie Schwartz mystery series, which lead with the information that the character's cat, Mr. Gray, has died. He returns to her as a friendly ghost who is a comforting and wise presence.

Simon's newest mystery, "The Ninth Life," is narrated by a feral black cat who is saved from drowning by a homeless girl. It's a dark tale with a mean-streets vibe, a transition from the cozy, amateur-sleuth territory of her first books. In both instances, Simon explores her interest in the relationship between people and cats.

If you read Shojai or Simon -- or other authors who include animals in their plots -- it's not unusual to find arcana about dog shows, training or animal behavior. Many writers find their work to be a way of delving into some of the issues or controversies surrounding animals. Shojai covered dog fighting in her latest, "Show and Tell," and Simon addressed animal hoarding in "Mew Is for Murder" and puppy and kitten mills in "Cattery Row."

"One of the rules I live by, though, is that I could never seriously hurt or kill an animal in a book," Simon says.

Shojai is on the same page.

"I don't write dog abuse scenes," she says. Instead, she highlights the setting, fight paraphernalia and laws and issues surrounding the crime.

What's the pleasure in reading a mystery with purr-sonality or canine charisma?

"I think mysteries that feature or involve animals mirror real life," Shojai says. "Readers identify with the hero of the book who cares deeply about a pet."

Q&A

Wash pet dishes

in hot, soapy water

Q: How often do I have to clean my pets' dishes? Can I just give them a quick swish with hot water? And what types of dishes are best? -- via Facebook

A: Much as I'd like to save you some time in your kitchen cleanup routine, a hot water rinse isn't enough to sanitize your dog or cat's dishes. A pet's food and water bowls should be cleaned thoroughly in hot, soapy water after every use, just as you would with your own dishes.

Not many of us love washing dishes by hand, although some people say they find it relaxing. You can run your pets' dishes through the dishwasher. Use the sanitize or high-temperature cycle. For pathogens to meet a steamy death, the water temperature inside the dishwasher must reach and stay at a minimum of 155 degrees Fahrenheit. The other bonus to using the dishwasher is that it's a water saver. According to a study from the University of Bonn in Germany, dishwashers use less water and require less energy than washing dishes by hand.

That said, I believe you should wash pet dishes separately from dishes used by human family members. I think this is especially important if you have young children, seniors or people with compromised immune systems living in your home. They are most susceptible to bacteria such as salmonella, MRSA and leptospira, which can be spread between animals and humans. Washing dishes separately adds an extra barrier to transmission.

I usually recommend stainless steel or ceramic dishes. They are both long-lasting and easy to clean, but ceramic dishes are prone to breakage. If bowls become chipped, replace them. Bacteria can hide out in the broken areas. Battered plastic dishes can also harbor bacteria, and that can lead to chin acne or other skin problems in cats and dogs. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

New flu strain

can affect cats

-- Cats as well as dogs can become ill from a new strain of canine influenza (H3N2) virus, according to experts at the Shelter Medicine Program at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine. "Suspicions of an outbreak in the cats were initially raised when a group of them displayed unusual signs of respiratory disease," says Sandra Newbury, DVM, the program's director. "While this first confirmed report of multiple cats (at an animal shelter in Indiana) testing positive for canine influenza in the U.S. shows the virus can affect cats, we hope that infections and illness in felines will continue to be quite rare."

-- Just how smart are dogs? More than we give them credit for, scientists say. The average dog's intelligence is estimated to be at the same level as that of a 2.5-year-old toddler -- in other words, curious and creative. Among the discoveries researchers have made in their studies of canine intelligence are the ability to read human cues, show emotional connection to their owners, display jealousy and learn hundreds of words. Vox reporter Joseph Stromberg says, "It's likely that these abilities have been shaped by evolution -- over thousands of years, we've selected those dogs best adapted to live with humans."

-- When Australian veterinarian Tristan Rich removed a brain tumor from the head of a 9-year-old goldfish, the complicated surgery involved three buckets of water, two of them containing anesthetic. The amount in the first bucket rendered Bubbles unconscious, allowing Dr. Rich and his team to run a tube from the maintenance bucket into Bubbles' mouth so the water could wash over his gills. They then removed the tumor, sealed the incision with tissue glue, and placed Bubbles into the "recovery" bucket, where he received oxygen, pain relievers and antibiotics. Now Mr. Bubbles is swimming pretty. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.

What you don't know about heartworm disease can hurt your dog or cat

By Kim Campbell Thornton

You've probably seen a dusty jar of long, spaghettilike worms in your veterinarian's office. They're heartworms (Dirofilaria immitis), and they are deadly to dogs and cats. The internal parasites make themselves at home in the heart and lungs, causing heart failure and lung disease and potentially migrating to the brain, eye and spinal cord. Here are seven things you might not know about heartworm disease:

1. Heartworms are transmitted by more than 70 species of mosquitoes. Some of these mosquitoes don't need standing bodies of water to reproduce. They thrive in small areas, such as downspouts, gutters and flowerpots and adapt well to cold weather.

2. The incidence of heartworm disease is rising. Between 2013 and 2015, the Companion Animal Parasite Council saw a 166 percent increase in reported positive heartworm cases. That's because nationwide, only about 35 percent of dogs are on preventive medication, says C. Thomas Nelson, DVM, who practices in Anniston, Alabama, and is a spokesperson for the American Heartworm Society. On the West Coast, it's only 16 to 18 percent. In the Southeast, where heartworms are especially prevalent, it's about 26 percent.

3. Heartworm disease has been found in pets in all 50 states. "Owners carry their dogs with them a lot," says parasitologist John W. McCall, Ph.D., professor emeritus in the department of infectious diseases at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. "They go from the north to the south, and they just don't really think that they're going into an area where there's mosquitoes. Many owners don't even know heartworm is transmitted by mosquitoes."

4. Cats can get heartworm disease. They are not as susceptible as dogs, but the worms can cause more serious problems in cats. Larvae in the lungs lead to what's called heartworm-associated respiratory disease (HARD), which has signs similar to feline asthma. It's worse if worms manage to develop to the adult stage.

"The clinical signs associated with the presence of a couple of adult worms in the cat's pulmonary artery are usually very severe, ranging from acute respiratory distress to sudden death as a result of severe inflammation and pulmonary embolism," says Romain Pariaut, DVM, an internal medicine specialist and associate professor of cardiology at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York.

5. Preventive medication is recommended year-round for dogs and cats in all areas. One reason is because mosquitoes are more widespread. Another is that longer bouts of warm weather and shorter bouts of cold weather mean mosquitoes are seen year-round in most areas.

6. Heartworms are becoming resistant to preventive products. Bacteria, viruses and parasites such as heartworms eventually become resistant to drugs used against them, McCall says. The current drugs have been used for almost 30 years.

"We don't really know how much of a problem it is," he says, "but the longer we use the products, the more likely it is to occur."

7. Experts recommend combining preventive with a dog-safe mosquito repellent. Even though preventive medication is highly effective, it's not failproof, especially in areas where heartworms have become resistant. Based on a study McCall did using Vectra 3D, which repels and kills mosquitoes, combining heartworm preventive with the topical parasiticide was 100 percent effective in blocking transmission of microfilariae (immature heartworms) from dogs to mosquitoes -- a necessary part of the heartworm lifecycle -- and more than 95 percent effective in repelling and killing mosquitoes for 28 days after treatment.

"If the dog is treated, the mosquito can't bite the dog and it can't transmit the infective larvae to the dog," McCall says. "It will pretty much keep the dog protected, even when there's a high degree of resistance." The product is not safe for use on cats, but cats who live with dogs who are protected share the benefit.

Q&A

Fever can have

many causes

Q: My dog had her teeth cleaned, and all went well with a couple of extractions. A week or so later, she wouldn't eat, and when we took her to the vet, she had a 104-degree fever. We tried a couple of different antibiotics, which didn't reduce the fever, so we were referred to a specialty hospital. They tested for everything, and she wasn't getting better. The vets kept her overnight and gave her fluids and super antibiotics, but she would not consistently eat and every test came back negative.

Long story short -- and $10,000 later -- my vet took an X-ray of her mouth and discovered an abscess in the jaw. He removed the tooth, cleaned out the abscess, gave her antibiotics and away she went. Why is it so hard to find the cause of a fever like this? -- via email

A: What an ordeal! I really feel for you. I can tell you that it's a real diagnostic puzzle when fever is the only significant sign on examination. My colleague Kenneth R. Harkin, an internal medicine specialist at Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine, spoke on this subject in January at the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando, Florida. He says that figuring out the cause of a fever of unknown origin -- also called a cryptic fever -- becomes challenging when routine diagnostic tests don't pinpoint the problem.

As you discovered, the cost of testing (and hospitalization) can skyrocket as veterinarians seek other answers. Inflammation is the most common cause of fevers, Dr. Harkin says. Among the many possible inflammatory or infectious diseases that could cause fever are acute pancreatitis, pyelonephritis, lupus, immune-mediated polyarthritis and leptospirosis. Dogs with a recently discovered heart murmur may have bacterial endocarditis. Certain cancers can cause fever as well, including lymphoma, leukemia and liver cancer. All of these can be easily missed because abnormalities in the lab work can be subtle.

I'm glad your dog's fever was successfully resolved. -- Dr. Marty Becker

Do you have a pet question? Send it to askpetconnection@gmail.com or visit Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker.

THE BUZZ

More retirement

homes permit pets

-- TigerPlace, a retirement community in Columbia, Missouri, is a pet lover's dream. Residents can keep their animals with them and benefit from an animal care staff that helps walk, feed and care for the pets as needed. Allowing pets and providing pet-care services is a growing trend at retirement communities. TigerPlace, with 90 residents, is operated in collaboration with the Sinclair School of Nursing at the University of Missouri. Rebecca Johnson, director of the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction at MU's College of Veterinary Medicine, says pets encourage people to walk, decrease loneliness and promote social interactions with other people.

-- Prehistoric best friend? Scientists in Siberia are studying the mummified remains -- including skin, hair, internal organs and stomach contents -- of two unusually well-preserved puppies thought to have died in a landslide more than 12,000 years ago. Amazingly, the brain of one is intact, the first-ever completely preserved brain of a Pleistocene canid. DNA tests on the first puppy, found five years ago, confirm dog rather than wolf ancestry, but the genetic makeup of ancient dogs and wolves is similar. The pups' genomes will be further evaluated in the hope of learning more about canine domestication and evolution.

-- A veterinarian at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine is working with physicians to test a new delivery method for a canine melanoma vaccine, according to an article by David Wahlberg in the Wisconsin State Journal. David Vail, DVM, is testing a modified tattoo gun with multiple punctures, which may induce a stronger immune reaction than a single injection. The canine melanoma vaccine, an immunotherapy approach that works to prevent the skin cancer from spreading, was approved in 2010 and is currently injected intramuscularly. If the new approach works in pet dogs, it could also benefit humans. -- Dr. Marty Becker, Kim Campbell Thornton and Mikkel Becker

ABOUT PET CONNECTION

Pet Connection is produced by a team of pet-care experts headed by "The Dr. Oz Show" veterinarian Dr. Marty Becker and award-winning journalist Kim Campbell Thornton. They are affiliated with Vetstreet.com and are the authors of many best-selling pet-care books. Joining them is dog trainer and behavior consultant Mikkel Becker. Dr. Becker can be found at Facebook.com/DrMartyBecker or on Twitter at DrMartyBecker. Kim Campbell Thornton is at Facebook.com/KimCampbellThornton and on Twitter at kkcthornton. Mikkel Becker is at Facebook.com/MikkelBecker and on Twitter at MikkelBecker.