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The cliche an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure
also applies to your Labrador Retriever. Don’t wait for your Labrador
Retriever to get sick. Have your Labrador Retriever vaccinated
against diseases. Vaccinations are cheaper than having your pet
treated for disease.
Veterinarians
agree that the immune system of your dog has to learn to recognize
an infection so it can produce the required antibodies to combat
it. Only vaccination can do this. Unvaccinated Labrador Retrievers
can become very sick when attacked with a virus or bacteria
because their immune system failed to respond faster. Vaccinations
teach the immune system to react faster before the infectious
agent can do damage.
When the
mother dog is nursing, she is giving antibodies to her pups.
These antibodies will protect the young ones but not for long.
Once the antibodies from the mother are gone, the pup becomes
an open target to many diseases.
Maternal
antibodies, though, when still present in a pup’s immune system,
makes vaccinations useless. For this, vaccinations must be made
in a series. Shots should be made 3 to 4 weeks apart. Vaccinations
at 8, 12 and 16 weeks of age plus annual boosters guarantee
good health for your pets.
Recommended
for dogs is the standard DAAPPL and for cats, FVRCP. DAAPPL
combats distemper, leptospirosis, parvovirus, parainfluenza
and hepatitis in dogs. Cats are protected by FVRCP from calicivirus,
panleukopenia and feline viral rhinotraceitis. These diseases
are fatal and your pet needs to be vaccinated against them.
Of course,
rabies is a big concern too and vaccination is important. At
16 weeks, your pup or kitten should be given rabies shot followed
by an annual booster. Depending on the vaccine, the shot can
be given every 3 years. The law requires that you have your
pets vaccinated for rabies.
But even
if the law doesn’t require rabies vaccination, it is always
best to have your Labrador Retriever vaccinated because it will
not only protect them from rabies but will also protect you
from legal issues. There are some cases when an otherwise healthy
animal has to be euthanized because it was unvaccinated but
later bitten by an unvaccinated animal.
Also, as
a responsible Labrador Retriever owner, be mindful of your dog’s
lifestyle. The kind of lifestyle it leads exposes it to diseases
in varying degrees. If you always enter your dog in dog shows
or if your dog goes to boarding kennels, vaccinations for corona
and bordetella will greatly benefit the animal. |
