My Poodle

[Sullivan43]

My Poodle had the rabies shot this morning and had a reaction to it. He also had the Provo shot a few months back and had a reaction to it. Can anyone help me in why they do this?

[Sandra_G]

I also have a mini Poodle who always gets reactions to her shots...since she was little.  The swelling at the vaccine site was awful. She slept alot, limped & couldn't go up even one step. So my Vet decided to give each shot separate..one week apart. She also gets liquid Childrens Tylenol 1 hour before each visit for shots.
I works like a miracle. Julie is fine after each shot.
Please give it a try...it's worth it. Good luck.

[Ghilly]

Sometimes dogs just have reactions to their vaccinations.  They're just like children.  Sometimes they will run a fever when they receive their childhood immunizations.  Since this seems to happen to your dog no matter what type of immunization is being given, what I would do from here on in is, instead of vaccinating him every year (because you will receive a reminder in the mail from your vet every year), just have the vet draw a blood sample and check the titers in the blood.  The titers will tell you how much immunity your dog still has against the diseases they vaccinate against.  As long as your dog has adequate immunity as indicated by the titers, there is no need to vaccinate.  With regard to the rabies vaccine, if your dog doesn't go outside on his own you may consider giving it to him every three years.  It depends on what your municipality requires, since rabies is the only vaccination that is mandated by law.  However, if the vaccine is going to cause your dog to, for instance, go into anaphylactic shock, you have to weigh the safety factor of possibly causing a fatal reaction vs the odds of him being loose outside and running into a rabid animal.  For example, if you live in mid-town Manhattan on the 57th floor of a high rise and your dog is trained to go on puppy pads, you can probably forego rabies vaccinations unless you plan to board him while you go on vacation, since all boarding kennels require proof of rabies vaccination.  Sometimes you have to show proof of rabies vaccination to take your dog to a show in a different state than the one you live in, but if you don't show your dog, this should not be a factor for you.

In short, once he has received his vaccines and his first year boosters, unless he is going to be heavily challenged, it's safer to forego vaccinations sometimes.  Your vet can advise you more adequately on this since he knows your dog and he also knows the severity of the reactions he had to the vaccines.

Ghilly

[ginger899]

I am sorry your question went down the list and wasn't answered before.

I have heard of a few dogs that had a reaction to their shots. It is a bit of a shock for the immune system to cope with the sudden 'invasion' and some don't cope as well as do others.
I do think you should talk to your vet about this, as it has happened more than once. I think there may be some medication could be given to your dog prior to the shot in future. As I have no personal experience of this I am not quite certain what. Do ask your vet. You could even ask over the phone so you don't have to schedule a visit. I am sure your vet would find time to talk to you about this.

How is your dog now? Has he 'bounced back' after the reaction? I do hope so.