My girl has just come into season and although I hand't planned to breed her this heat, the other litter I have ended up a single puppy.
So now I am considering breeding my other girl because I can handle both litters so close together with only one pup in the first one.
Problem is, she is due for vaccines in June.
She came in today, would you vaccinate her right now and go ahead with the breeding in 2 weeks, or is it too close.
I am not even going to ask the vet, they all say you can vaccinate even a pregnant bitch, so it's pointless.

I would NOT give her any vaccince and then breed her in 2 weeks its to much.

If she were my girl, she'd get her shots the day her puppies get their's. I've had them over a few months like that, and it won't hurt.

Good luck with whatever you do decide.

Actually, my vet recommends you NOT vaccinate if you're planning to breed soon.

My vet also recommends NOT vaccinating a bitch who is due to be bred soon. I had a bitch who was 1 month out from being due to come into season, whom we had planned to breed and he told me not to vacc her.

If you're worried you can always pull titers. I no longer vaccinate any of my adults, I titer. Titers haven't showed a need to vaccinate in over 3 years.

Good luck!
Kim Stahl

Are you vaccinating every year, or doing the three year protocol?

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My girl has just come into season and although I hand't planned to breed her this heat, the other litter I have ended up a single puppy.
So now I am considering breeding my other girl because I can handle both litters so close together with only one pup in the first one.
Problem is, she is due for vaccines in June.
She came in today, would you vaccinate her right now and go ahead with the breeding in 2 weeks, or is it too close.
I am not even going to ask the vet, they all say you can vaccinate even a pregnant bitch, so it's pointless.

My vet recommended we do NOT vaccinate if we were planning to breed in the next 2 months. She was due for vaccines end of March and ended up in heat at the end of March. 12 weeks late isn't too bad to hold over on vaccines - guaranteed she's still protected from last year's vaccs.

Thank you all for your responses! Looks like waiting will be the right decision.
It was my gut feeling anyway but I wanted to know what others had to say.
I have heard of people boostering their bitches right before a breeding with the theory that it would boost the immunity given to the pups.
No idea if there is anything to that, so better safe than sorry IMO!
Thanks again!

Immunity is an all or nothing thing...boosters do not make one 'more immune'. If she is, she is.
Having said that, if you choose to vaccinate a dog who has nothing to gain from it, then you get all of the risk and none of the benefit. When we vaccinate our dogs, they are fighting actual diseases as well as cleaning up all the chemicals that come in the vaccines and the foreign protein matter. This will take a great deal of effort from the immune system and will leave your bitch susceptible to every other disease that comes their way at a time when there may also be stress or even illness in their lives.
Bitches who are in whelp certainly do not need the extra stress of vaccinations IMO

Wow, if this is true I'm going to have to revise my notes for the course I teach in Immunology. I use Janeway's Immunobiology text, in case that matters to anyone. Immunity is not all or nothing- the titer of antibodies can be high or low, and selection takes place during the production of antibodies and T cell receptors so that those made in response to a new innoculation may be better able to recognise and bind the antigen, which is why multiple shots are given for most immunizations. That said, there are reasons not to over-immunize. It may increase the likelihood of developing allergies or maybe even autoimmune disease. Probably it would be better to check the titer before reimmunizing. My vet does not recommend vaccinating during pregnancy.

Interestingly, I used to raise and show dairy goats, and we, meaning all the goat breeders I knew, always vaccinated during pregnancy because it was believed that the kids would be protected by high titers of antibodies in the mother's colostrum! I've been out of that scene for 20+ years, so I don't know if that is still the practice.

Multiple shots are given because nobody really knows when maternal antibodies are gone for each virus, so we routinely readminister vaccines until we finally catch the point in time where the passive immunity is low enough for seroconversion to occur.

After seroconversion has occurred, re-vaccinating an already-immune animal has little or no benefit; the previous immunity will act like maternal antibody and inactivate the vaccine, and immunity is not "boosted" at all. So you have all the risks of the vaccination, and no benefit.

For starters, you may want to read more of this in: Schultz, R.D., "Current and Future Canine and Feline Vaccination Programs." Vet Med 3: No. 3, 233-254, 1998.

Most duration of immunity tests are done by vaccine companies, but usually run for only one to three years. It's not that the vaccination "wears off" after a year or three years, but that the test ended at one year or three years.

Why do you think that Dr. Jean Dodd's is campaigning so heavily for a long term challenge study showing that the rabies vaccination is good for life?? She knows a good deal more about immunology than you and I combined.

Circulating antibodies are only a small part of immunity. Leading immunologists like Schultz state that with successful seroconversion, memory cells for core vaccines are created and exist for the life of the animal (or at least 7 years in serologic and challenge studies in greater than 95% of tested animals). The study only lasted seven years, so it is a safe conclusion that auto-immunity does occur and lasts for life. This information has been widely available to veterinarians for over 15 years. There is a reason your family doctor doesn't send you reminder cards every year, asking you to re-vaccinate for every virus you were vaccinated for as a child!

It may be that some animals do not seroconvert and this can be mistaken for loss of immunity. This can be due to illness of the animal, polyvalent vaccines, or passive immunity among other issues. But it is widely believed by leading immunologists that memory cells remain for the life of the animal. This is why it is exceedingly rare for adult dogs to contract parvo or distemper...they have auto-immunity.

I know that Dr. Jean Dodds and Dr. Ronald Schultz do not re-vaccinate their own dogs. I only wish more people were aware of this

well said, I agree. I am vaccinating at 8, 12, 1nd 16 weeks, at one year, and then every three years, though Dr's Schultz and Dodds say that shots should last at least 5 years. But Dr. Dodds says, yes, please titer every year.

We could do a lot of good for our dogs by monitarily supporting their long term challenge study showing that the rabies vaccination is good for life.

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Replying to:

Multiple shots are given because nobody really knows when maternal antibodies are gone for each virus, so we routinely readminister vaccines until we finally catch the point in time where the passive immunity is low enough for seroconversion to occur.

After seroconversion has occurred, re-vaccinating an already-immune animal has little or no benefit; the previous immunity will act like maternal antibody and inactivate the vaccine, and immunity is not "boosted" at all. So you have all the risks of the vaccination, and no benefit.

For starters, you may want to read more of this in: Schultz, R.D., "Current and Future Canine and Feline Vaccination Programs." Vet Med 3: No. 3, 233-254, 1998.

Most duration of immunity tests are done by vaccine companies, but usually run for only one to three years. It's not that the vaccination "wears off" after a year or three years, but that the test ended at one year or three years.

Why do you think that Dr. Jean Dodd's is campaigning so heavily for a long term challenge study showing that the rabies vaccination is good for life?? She knows a good deal more about immunology than you and I combined.

Circulating antibodies are only a small part of immunity. Leading immunologists like Schultz state that with successful seroconversion, memory cells for core vaccines are created and exist for the life of the animal (or at least 7 years in serologic and challenge studies in greater than 95% of tested animals). The study only lasted seven years, so it is a safe conclusion that auto-immunity does occur and lasts for life. This information has been widely available to veterinarians for over 15 years. There is a reason your family doctor doesn't send you reminder cards every year, asking you to re-vaccinate for every virus you were vaccinated for as a child!

It may be that some animals do not seroconvert and this can be mistaken for loss of immunity. This can be due to illness of the animal, polyvalent vaccines, or passive immunity among other issues. But it is widely believed by leading immunologists that memory cells remain for the life of the animal. This is why it is exceedingly rare for adult dogs to contract parvo or distemper...they have auto-immunity.

I know that Dr. Jean Dodds and Dr. Ronald Schultz do not re-vaccinate their own dogs. I only wish more people were aware of this