Vaccinations & Consultations
Vaccinating your pet is one of the most important things you can do to ensure they lead a healthy life.
Here are our top reasons for vaccinating your pet:
- Vaccinations protect against preventable diseases
- Vaccinations are substantially less expensive than the cost of vet treatment for the diseases they protect against
- Vaccinations protect your pet from transmissible diseases in boarding facilities, at parks and even when they visit the vet. If your pet has to be hospitalised for any illness, their immune system may already be compromised so you want to make sure they are protected.
Your pet’s health, lifestyle and exactly where in Concord and surrounding suburbs you live, may affect which vaccinations are necessary, so our vets will work with you to develop a simple and effective vaccination program for your pet.
Vaccinating your Dog
A puppy’s first vaccinations are at 8, 12 and 16 weeks of age, and annually after that. A week after your puppy’s 16 week vaccination, your puppy can go out and about to socialise with other dogs.
Canine vaccinations are known by the codes C3, C4, C5 and C7, and the diseases that are commonly vaccinated against around Concord are:
- Parvovirus: causes potentially fatal diarrhoea, especially in pups and dogs under 2 years
- Distemper: coughing, diarrhoea and sometimes twitching, seizures, loss of balance and blindness
- Hepatitis: vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and possibly liver failure
- Canine Cough: also known as Kennel Cough, but NOT only a risk if your dog is boarding
- Parainfluenza: a viral disease causing a nasty cough
- Bordatella bronchiseptica: bacteria causing a harsh, dry cough and lethargy
- Leptospirosis: Leptospirosis in dogs is an infectious disease caused by bacteria in the genus Leptospira. Acute kidney injury has been the most common presentation for canine leptospirosis in recent years. Dogs affected by leptospirosis might show clinical signs that include lethargy, anorexia, vomiting, abdominal pain, and polyuria, oliguria, or anuria.
At Burwood & Bay Vets we will always recommend the most up-to-date vaccines and usually give dogs their core vaccines every three years and their kennel cough/leptospirosis vaccines yearly.
Vaccinating your Cat
A kitten’s first vaccinations are at 8, 12 and 16 weeks of age, and annually after that.
The main feline vaccinations are known by the codes F3 and F4, and common cat vaccinations around Concord are:
- Enteritis (Feline Panleukopenia) can be very severe especially in unvaccinated kittens less than 12 months of age. It causes fever, vomiting, diarrhoea, liver failure and sudden death
- Feline Calicivirus is part of the cat flu
- Feline Rhinotracheitis (Feline Herpes Virus) is another part of cat flu and can lead to permanent nasal and sinus infection
- Chlamydia is a bacterial disease causing conjunctivitis, respiratory disease, infections arthritis and even abortion
- Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV or Feline AIDS) must be vaccinated against if your cat EVER goes outside. It is a potentially fatal disease spread between cats via bites, for which there is no treatment or cure. FIV is a commonly seen disease in the stray cat population of the Inner West in Sydney.