# 3 cases



## MollyMuiMa (Oct 13, 2012)

Lepto is very rare in Calif so I don't give it and wouldn't anyway because of the chance of a bad reaction known to happen to small dogs!

P.S. read a very good article here.... google:

SMOKE AND MIRRORS-Dogs Naturally Magazine
www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/leptospirosis-vaccine


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## poodlecrazy#1 (Jul 2, 2013)

Nope, never, not as long as I have been here. Last year a vet tried to claim he DX'd a dog with Lepto, but it turned out to be false. He just wanted to say it so he could push Lepto vaccines in all his clients and make us do it to ours. He even called a meeting with all the veterinarians in the tri city area. Even if it had been true I wouldn't of vaccinated my three toys. They already show vaccine reactivity and Lepto has one of the highest rates of reaction. That Rabies and Rattle Snake have the highest reaction incidents.


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

She had a severe reaction to Rabies , no others. We are going to give benadryl before. She had distemper today and shes fine.My vet wouldn't tell me there were reported cases last year if there were not.


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## patk (Jun 13, 2013)

over 15 years ago, my vet at the time was very concerned about administering a lepto vaccine. she had no problems with neutering my dog at six months of age, which is now not advised by many here, so the lepto concern must be pretty serious and has been around a long time. 

what's the claimed length of effectiveness of lepto? you may have to evaluate the need for constant re-vaccination, too.


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## poodlecrazy#1 (Jul 2, 2013)

patk said:


> over 15 years ago, my vet at the time was very concerned about administering a lepto vaccine. she had no problems with neutering my dog at six months of age, which is now not advised by many here, so the lepto concern must be pretty serious and has been around a long time.
> 
> what's the claimed length of effectiveness of lepto? you may have to evaluate the need for constant re-vaccination, too.



It's a 6 month vaccine like Bordatella


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

poodlecrazy#1 said:


> It's a 6 month vaccine like Bordatella


i hear that, that is why i stopped with the bordatella. i gave it in November because she was boarding and they wouldn't take her without it. Now i found a place that doesn't demand it.
So if I gave the lepto i would have to give every few months I guess. I am still leaning towards not doing it, just the 3 cases make me nervous.


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## poodlecrazy#1 (Jul 2, 2013)

Is she around water sources that would harbor something like Lepto? Like stagnant or dirty water?


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

poodlecrazy#1 said:


> Is she around water sources that would harbor something like Lepto? Like stagnant or dirty water?


Only let her drink the water from our filter.


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## MiniPoo (Mar 6, 2014)

mom2Zoe said:


> Are there always cases of dogs with lepto in your area.?
> Zoe went in for her distemper and in a few weeks Rabies. That is all she is getting this year.
> My vet seemed ok with her not getting the rest, although she seemed to push lepto. She told me 3 dogs died in my town last year. Zoe does not go to streams and i don't let her drink from puddles. She still thinks can be in the backyard form animals. I am a little torn..... talk to me


I decided to stop giving Lepto vaccinations to my older dogs and Dakota has never had the Lepto vaccine. My vet does say that there are cases of it in our area but the vaccination is not guaranteed to provide protection against all the varieties of Lepto and it doesn't last very long.

I decided instead that during the annual checkup of my dogs I would include a blood test for Lepto and Lyme as well. Otherwise, if my dog gets sick I will check the symptoms of Lepto and take him to the vet right away because if caught quickly this is a treatable disease.

We should remember however that Lepto is a zoonotic disease, which means it can be transmitted to humans. That is one reason why vets want to give the vaccination.

BTW, I learned recently that when my vet was giving the vaccination for Distemper to my dogs, that it included not only Parvo (which is ok) but also 2 other vaccinations. So it was really a 4-in-1 vaccination, which I did not like. They said that they buy vaccinations in bulk quantities and there is not enough interest from owners to buy just Distemper or Parvo by themselves. So next year I have to buy a single dose myself if I want Dakota to get a yearly booster with only Distemper and Parvo. You might want to ask your vet how many vaccines are in their "Distemper" vaccination.


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## poodlecrazy#1 (Jul 2, 2013)

If she isn't around any other water sources then I wouldn't worry about it, especially if she has reacted to a vaccine before. Now if she were say going camping or hiking with you and playing in lakes and ponds then I might think about it (but just think about it ?).


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## BeBe67 (May 13, 2015)

Our large dogs get the Lepto vaccine. Our toys do not. I am too worried about reactions with them as they are so small. My vet says NOT to give the Lepto vaccine to the small dogs.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

There is a fair amount of lepto in raccoons in the east. We vaccinate against it.


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## poolann (Jan 31, 2013)

Previously many vets gave DHPP which includes distemper, hepatitis, parainfluenze & parvo. Now there is a DHLPP vaccine which includes lepto. I only provide this info so folks can look at receipts to see what their dogs have actually been given.


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

lily cd re said:


> There is a fair amount of lepto in raccoons in the east. We vaccinate against it.


Lilly is bigger though. My vet said there have been cases and we are not far from each other.:dontknow: still torn


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

poolann said:


> Previously many vets gave DHPP which includes distemper, hepatitis, parainfluenze & parvo. Now there is a DHLPP vaccine which includes lepto. I only provide this info so folks can look at receipts to see what their dogs have actually been given.


 She just had DHPP, no lepto included. She gets rabies next week,that is all i am thinking of doing.


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

Last year My groomer lost her perfectly healthy 8 year old spoo to a terrible reaction to the Lepto vaccination. I wil NOT be giving it to Iris again. She is "elderly" and immune compromised as well.

Be cautious with this one.

Best of luck, Viking Queen


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## AngelAviary (Aug 12, 2014)

I live in SE Michigan about 30 miles from Detroit. We are having a huge increase in cases of Lepto because of the rats that are moving out of the city (due to construction and such) to the suburbs. All the Vets are recommending the vaccine. I usually had my Border Collie vaccinated for DHLPP each year (she is 6yrs old now) and she never had a vaccine reaction. I opted for titer tests for her this year and found that her titer to Lepto is low so I am going to booster it. Im not too worried about a reaction but always have a early appointment with them so if anything happens they are open for a recheck. Stella had her DHLPP this year as her annual adult vaccine and I am going to start doing titers on her next year as well. My backyard backs up to wooded property and we have deer come right into the yard (its not fenced yet, this summer it will be!) so that is another source of the virus.


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

My understanding was that if a titer is low, it means they are still producing antibodies. I don't pretend to understand it all, but I thought I read on Dr. Dodds page that as long as there is some antibody that it is necessary to revaccinate.


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

AngelAviary said:


> I live in SE Michigan about 30 miles from Detroit. We are having a huge increase in cases of Lepto because of the rats that are moving out of the city (due to construction and such) to the suburbs. All the Vets are recommending the vaccine. I usually had my Border Collie vaccinated for DHLPP each year (she is 6yrs old now) and she never had a vaccine reaction. I opted for titer tests for her this year and found that her titer to Lepto is low so I am going to booster it. Im not too worried about a reaction but always have a early appointment with them so if anything happens they are open for a recheck. Stella had her DHLPP this year as her annual adult vaccine and I am going to start doing titers on her next year as well. My backyard backs up to wooded property and we have deer come right into the yard (its not fenced yet, this summer it will be!) so that is another source of the virus.


We have loads of deer and my backyard isn't fenced. Deer are another source ? So so torn


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

N2Mischief said:


> My understanding was that if a titer is low, it means they are still producing antibodies. I don't pretend to understand it all, *but I thought I read on Dr. Dodds page that as long as there is some antibody that it is necessary to revaccinate.*


Do you mean that it is unnecessary to revaccinate? Any amount of antibody indicates the dog has an immunity to it. 

I can't tell you what to do but I can tell you I'll never vaccinate for lepto. And I would wait longer than one week to get rabies after just having the multi disease vaccine, the dhpp. Those ones with so many in one are too much imo to bombard the dog with. Then to give rabies only one week later....I wouldn't do it. I'd wait longer than the often recommended 2 weeks even. But I don't give all these vaccines anyhow...not to the extent that many vets recommend. I believe in letting their immune systems grow strong because I think too much of this stuff causes a lot of problems. I hope all will be well.


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## poodlecrazy#1 (Jul 2, 2013)

I view vaccinating for Lepto the exact same way as vaccinating for Bordatella. It is a very treatable disease if caught early, and the cons of the vaccine out way the pros. Just like the Bordatella vaccine the Lepto vaccine can even cause the dog to get the disease, it only protects for a few of the strains, and it has a high reactivity rate due to the adjuvants added to cause an immune response. If your dog is healthy, has little exposure, and are watchful for symptoms of Lepto after possible exposure I don't think vaccinating is necessary. Here is a great article about Lepto and vaccinating for it by Dr. Becker. 

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2013/02/25/canine-leptospirosis.aspx


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

mom2Zoe said:


> *Lilly is bigger though*. My vet said there have been cases and we are not far from each other.:dontknow: still torn


Yes, of course, and Lily and Peeves both go out to areas where there are plenty of raccoons and other wildlife. If I let them off leash and they go out of sight then I can't be certain they won't have had "puddle" water.

I do understand your concern about Zoe.


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

Poodlebeguiled said:


> Do you mean that it is unnecessary to revaccinate? Any amount of antibody indicates the dog has an immunity to it.
> 
> I can't tell you what to do but I can tell you I'll never vaccinate for lepto. And I would wait longer than one week to get rabies after just having the multi disease vaccine, the dhpp. Those ones with so many in one are too much imo to bombard the dog with. Then to give rabies only one week later....I wouldn't do it. I'd wait longer than the often recommended 2 weeks even. But I don't give all these vaccines anyhow...not to the extent that many vets recommend. I believe in letting their immune systems grow strong because I think too much of this stuff causes a lot of problems. I hope all will be well.


It is not one week, it will be over two, vet said it is fine
I wanted to wait even longer however I am nervous about being reported since she was due for Rabies already


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## Poodlebeguiled (May 27, 2013)

I had my Lab when I lived in north Idaho and she would go into any disgusting body of water she could find. We lived in a wilderness area and she was off leash the majority of the time. I had a creek on my property and there were ditches along side the property and a pond full of gross water that if I wasn't watching, she'd go right in. Where we hiked and took walks there were various bodies of water...some rather still like the ponds on the golf course and some cleaner places. But there was wildlife galore there and their poo most likely worked it's way into the water. She drank the water. I never gave her a lepto vaccine or any of my dogs and none of them ever got the disease. They were probably exposed, although this wasn't a humid place. But it was hot in the summer. A little exposure, as long as they don't get very sick is a natural immunity and much safer. I think all this over vaccinating destroys the immune system. I think watching for symptoms is important if you're in an area where it is more prevalent. But it is a bacteria and quite treatable if caught early. 

Here my Dobe is getting a drink and Bonnie is just getting out of the pond from her swim. (Doberman wouldn't go in past his pasterns. lol)





Sorry Mom2zoe...I must have mis read that.


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## mom2Zoe (Jun 17, 2014)

Thanks for all the replies and the useful articles.
Think I am leaning to not to the lepto. I never let Zoe drink from puddles and it is just the wildlife in the backyard that is a concern.
I think it is too risky to vax and her exposure is still minimal. So looks like it will be just the Dhpp and rabies for us for now.


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## AngelAviary (Aug 12, 2014)

N2Mischief said:


> My understanding was that if a titer is low, it means they are still producing antibodies. I don't pretend to understand it all, but I thought I read on Dr. Dodds page that as long as there is some antibody that it is necessary to revaccinate.


The titers were sent to MSU and they have a min number they like to see the titer levels be greater than. Her Lepto titer test tested for 6 strains of Lepto and 4 were less than 50, 1 was 50 and 1 was 100. It is recommended that I vaccinate because they consider these levels low. She was also tested for Distemper virus VN= 32 (want 32 or higher), Adenovirus VN= 16 (want 16 or higher), and Parvo HI= >640 (want 80 or higher) all of these are fine. Looks like she will never need a Parvo again! The amounts in the () is considered protective according to my copy of the lab paperwork. 

Im glad everyone here is so proactive on their dogs care. It is so great to know owners take the time to educate themselves for the benefit of the dogs.


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