Improved protection without adjuvants
The leptospirosis is next to the kennel cough the main reason why dogs should still be revaccinated annually. The major problem diseases in dogs distemper, rabies, hepatitis and parvovirosis are now also with vaccinations at intervals of 3 years largely under control (after completed basic vaccination for the dog diseases, except rabies, which normally requires no basic vaccination).
Leptospirosis, unlike the other diseases mentioned, is a bacterial disease and this makes it more difficult to protect the dog via vaccination. In addition, there are different "types" of leptospires, which complicates things a bit more. Therefore, even with regularly vaccinated dogs, there have always been dogs that have contracted leptospires, even with us!
The new vaccine now protects against 6 types of these leptospires and increases the protection enormously. Like more and more of the current vaccines, the new leptospirosis vaccine does not contain any adjuvants (admixtures), which significantly reduces the risk of side effects. In addition, the new vaccine uses a new filtration technique to filter out natural allergens, which means that the new vaccine can hardly trigger any allergies.
That something must be done against leptospirosis is unquestionable, especially here at Lake Zurich. The natural reservoir are rats (also water rats). The rats excrete leptospires in their urine. Especially in warm climatic conditions, small water ponds and bodies of water are then infectious for the dogs, because the leptospires can keep well in them....
...So we have to deal with leptospirosis in our practice again and again. The dogs fall seriously ill. They can be treated, but permanent damage especially to the kidneys up to kidney failure are unfortunately not always preventable! Untreated dogs can die quickly. Vaccinations prevent the infection or at least prevent severe disease.
Leptospirosis is a zoonosis, which means that sick dogs are a danger to humans and must be treated urgently! Infected urine of the sick dogs is contagious for humans! Vaccination of the dogs also means increased protection for humans, because the vaccination protects against the excretion of the leptospires in the dogs' urine!
We have been vaccinating all dogs with the new Lepto 6 vaccine since spring 2013 and have since re-vaccinated most of our canine patients with the basic vaccine (2 vaccinations with the new Lepto 6 vaccine 2-4 weeks apart). After the basic vaccination, the vaccine is used annually - for life. It is possible to carry out the leptospirosis vaccination at the same time as the nasal vaccination against kennel cough (also partly bacterial, must also be renewed annually).
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