I’ve written before about animal vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 with regard to mink, but with Russia having recently licensed its Carnivac-Cov vaccine for use in several species (namely dogs, cats, foxes and mink) and Zoetis developing a vaccine in the US for mink, there’s continued interest in the subject, so I’ll revisit it.
I’m glad
We’ve once again updated the Guide to Mitigating the Risk of Infection in Veterinary Practices During the COVID-19 Pandemic (14-Apr-2021). It can also be accessed through the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association Coronavirus FAQ webpage (member login required).
I’ll be happy when we can stop updating these guidelines. Progress is good and adding new information
The companion animal Ontario Animal Health Network has produced a series of mini-podcasts on COVID-19 precautions in veterinary clinics, featuring none other than Dr. Scott Weese. Each mini-podcast features a quick 3-5 minute “lighting round” on common questions and topics – bite-sized bits for busy practitioners and clinic staff who may only have a
Words from Dr. Mike Ryan, of the World Health Organization. He’s been a star communicator throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. We need to listen to voices like his and messages like this.
I’m always on the lookout for good-looking, easy-access resources to help communicate (and to help others communicate) messages around safe and responsible pet ownership, which is how this blog got its start! I also don’t like re-inventing the wheel when I don’t have to, and I appreciate that many organizations have people with vastly better
Lyme disease vaccine is a non-core vaccine, meaning it’s not needed for all dogs in all areas. It’s an effective vaccine, and I’d consider it a reasonable vaccine to give to dogs in (or visiting) higher risk areas, especially when there might be owner compliance issues with tick preventive medication. Available tick preventatives are very
This is probably the vaccine about which I get the most questions when it comes to delays. Leptospirosis (aka lepto) is a regionally important and potentially life-threatening infection of dogs (and people) caused by serovars of the Leptospira bacterium. It’s generally considered a non-core vaccine, meaning it’s not needed for all dogs in all areas.
In some ways, the approach to rabies vaccine is easy. In other ways, it’s complicated. To some degree, the medicine is easy, but other considerations (like regulatory requirements) cloud the picture.
The medicine:
Rabies vaccines are highly effective. A single initial dose provides at least 1 year of protection. The first dose is supposed
I’ve been dealing with questions (and some threats) about this issue for many months:
How to handle overdue vaccines because of COVID-19 delays
It’s a complex issue that’s hard to navigate because of limited data. We know how most vaccines work when used according to the label instructions. We don’t know much about what happens
While the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated controversies continue to dominate our collective attention, much older, more familiar diseases are still out there too, causing their old familiar – and deadly – problems. Rabies has once again reared its snarling head, this time in the small Arctic coastal community of Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. Rabies is
