Since rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus type II (RHDV2) made its first incursion into Canada, and again more recently with the first detection of this virus in Ontario, there’s been a lot of interest in vaccination of rabbits (rabbits and hares are the only species known to be affected). Effective vaccines are available for this
Update: Michigan Dog Disease
We already have an update on the Michigan dog disease outbreak that I wrote about yesterday which has attracted a lot of attention.
An update (August 24) from the Michigan State Veterinarian indicates this appears to be an outbreak of parvovirus. I’m not overly surprised. As I wrote yesterday:
An outbreak of our typical canine
Outbreak of Fatal Disease in Michigan Dogs? What Is It, Is It Real and What Do We Know?
I
’ve been holding off writing about this, hoping for more details, but my inbox has been flooded with questions about it so I figured I’d get the ball rolling. There’s been a bit of a media frenzy about an apparent outbreak of severe disease in dogs in northern Michigan.
What do we know?
2021 US Rabies Recap
Five human deaths due to rabies were reported in the US in 2021, the highest annual case count in the last decade. Obviously, that’s still a very small number overall and pales in comparison to other infectious diseases in the US, and to rabies deaths in other parts of the world like Asia and
Bordetella bronchiseptica (Kennel Cough) Vaccination in Dogs: Human Health Risk?
A recent paper in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacy and Therapeutics entitled “A doggy tale: Risk of zoonotic infection with Bordetella bronchiseptica for cystic fibrosis (CF) patients from live licensed bacterial veterinary vaccines for dogs and cats” (Moore et al. 2021) discusses (as the title suggests) human health risks from commonly-used
Challenging COVID-19 Vaccine Misinformation
Click here to download and read an open letter from a large group of University of Guelph faculty concerned about COVID-19 vaccine misinformation.
With freedom comes responsibility.
That applies to academic freedom too. It should not be used to provide cover for misrepresentation and misinformation.
COVID-19 Vaccination for Animals: Necessary, Useful?
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
COVID-19 and Overdue Dog/Cat Vaccines, Part 4: Lyme disease
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
COVID-19 and Overdue Dog/Cat Vaccines, Part 3: Leptospirosis
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.
COVID-19 and Overdue Dog/Cat Vaccines, Part 2: Rabies
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