Has anyone taken their dogs to the vets for this new Flu Shot ? One of the families who I am adopting our girl out to this weekend had his own Labrador in getting his booster shot. His vet was suggesting that he get his boy this Flu Shot since they've been treating lots of dogs for Pnemonia symptoms. The people thought it was just a simple case of Kennel Cough but it turns out to be this new strain of Flu that turns to Phnemonia.
Would you recommend this new flu shot ?
He's asking me if he should take his new dog he adopts from us and his own dog in to his vets for this new flu shot. I"m thinking it might be a good idea but I wanted to run it by all of you who have experience with this new flu strain. Thanks

The vaccine is recommended for kennels, breeders, people who travel a lot with their dogs and dogs in high risk areas. Since I am constantly going places with my dogs, I am giving the vaccine. My vet didn't push it, he just gave me the info. I did have my last litter done. No side affects. So, I figure at the least, it can't hurt.

No side effects??? Just off the top of my head, side effects include cancer, allergies, IBD, epilepsy. Jean Dodds will back this up.
Go ahead and vaccinate for whatever you think appropriate but don't ever think there are no dangerous side effects. Just ask the girls who are deceased or suffering from ALS from the Gardisil vaccine, or the 5 people who are already dead from the flu vaccine in Sweden. Know both the risks and the benefits and make a decision from there. For me, vaccines are indeed life threatening and if I am going to use them, the disease I am vaccinating for must also be life threatening, have a higher prevalance of morbidity and mortality than the vaccine and there must be no effective cure. That is my comfort level and others will feel differently.

I would be aware of the symptoms and keep vigilance. I wouldn't give this vaccine under any circumstances, but then again I tend not to use products that haven't been on the market for at least 5 years.

I wont jump and run to use it either.
To new with little research to back it up.

I surely would not have given it to my litters, you are brave.

Good grief. I guess I should have clarified further for this particular forum. MY puppies had no side affects from their vaccinations. We did watch them closely afterwards. Also, this was given after the 2nd set of regular vaccinations.

I have had dogs all of my life and the only problems we had were with UNvaccinated puppies. I have dealt with Parvo and Distemper personally with dogs when I was a kid. I would rather be a little over cautious.

Also, you have no idea what my dogs' vaccination program is, therefore you have no basis to lecture me on it. I am not a supporter of yearly vaccinations either. However, I do believe that it is important to at least vaccinate puppies and then run titers on adults.

Your puppies had no noticeable, immediate side effects...that is very different from no side effects. My point is, you open your dog to a whole slew of chronic diseases with vaccinations and I think it is important that the vaccine works and is less dangerous than the disease you are vaccinating for. In the case of the flu vaccine, I doubt this is the case.

Are any of you who are opposed to this vaccine getting or giving your family members the H1N1 vaccine?

Haven't decided on the shot for dogs yet. I got both seasonal and H1N1 vaccines. Want to get them for family (especially child with asthma) but not yet available for them. I am a healthcare worker, and at a hospital nearby a friend works at, there are 3 people in ICU on ventilators right now with H1N1. Also, we have had several area deaths.

Conversely, the human seasonal flu shot was given to someone on chemo, doctor's orders. He went from doing very well for 2 years to paralyzed, on ventilator, and then dying. Why vaccinate an outpatient on chemo, an immune suppressant, I don't know, but that is what happened. A lot different from a well person who is a health care worker. He will be missed this weekend at the Talbot KC agility trials.

One of my vets won't give the dog flu shot yet until it is proven safe and effective. Pneumonia is a scary thought, especially for puppies. Have had vaccinated adults get parvo, as the vaccine doesn't prevent infection, but usually prevents hospitalization due to symptoms. It just didn't in those young adults. They did recover, which an unvaccinated pup might not have.

I don't know the answer, so we are waiting and seeing on dog flu shot.