# Vaccinate or titer?



## tuckersmom20 (Dec 12, 2010)

Hi all...

I'm enrolling tuck into obedience classes and he requires vaccines or a titer.

I haven't vaccinated him since his initial booster in 2009.
The reason being is he's epileptic and stress and chemicals are a trigger.
The vet did agree with puting him on an every two year vaccine schedule, but now that's he'll be going to classes..... What do I do?

His combo vaccine plus vet visit is $100 total...
His titer and vet visit would be $120. 

But would still have immunity from 2009? When he was a puppy he got 4 sets of puppy shots (rescue was behind and had to restart), and then got 1 year booster...

Help  he's a raw dog too... So I'm trying to raise him and everyone else naturally. 

Hoping danemama will chime in too


----------



## Huginn (Nov 21, 2011)

I posted a thread along these lines a little while ago. From what I read both in the thread and on my own, it really only takes one vaccination to get immunity. Titers aren't always reliable, but neither are vaccines. If it were me, I would go with the titer test. Here's the link to my thread. 

http://dogfoodchat.com/forum/dog-health-issues-question/12380-titer-testing.html


----------



## Mia (Oct 4, 2010)

I stopped vaccinating all my dogs. If he is prone to sezuires. I would just have him go to the dog park and have him hang around alot of vaccinated dogs. Then go for a titer test. Dogs do shed vaccines. My gf she has 6 registered therapy dogs and they are all unvax. She is 100% natural no vax raw feeding. She never has had to vax hers. As long as the titers are high


----------



## Caty M (Aug 13, 2010)

Your dog will show antibodies. The reason for the puppy series is not that they need three, four shots to get immune, but that no one is quite sure when mom's milk's antibodies wear off, and so the idea is to give shots close together as to not provide a large window of unprotection. Especially since your dog was vaccinated at one year, you are fine. I would definitely titre especially considering your dog has epilepsy.

My IG was not vaccinated at all, and my sheltie only had one shot at the breeder- no other shots.


----------



## CoverTune (Dec 20, 2011)

I would titer. Gosh I wish titers were that cheap here! I was looking at doing rabies titers and it was nearly $300 per dog.


----------



## tuckersmom20 (Dec 12, 2010)

I believe the rabies titer is quite expensive here too... But lepto tite is 150$ and distemper/parvo titer is $120.

Hmm I think titer will be the way to go... At the same time he needs his pheno level checked too..
So might as well make the visit a good one! Lol


----------



## PeanutsMommy (Dec 7, 2008)

i do annual titers. my dog doesn't have any health issues but since he was a puppy the only vaccines he has received is rabies because it is required by law every 3 years and a rattlesnake vaccine when we were doing hiking as a preventative.

we do annual titers and his values are always the same. i vote doing the titer.


----------



## Mia (Oct 4, 2010)

You also may want to look into homeopathy. Look into Australian Bush Flower.


----------



## BrownieM (Aug 30, 2010)

There is no official rabies titer for dogs yet so I would not spend my money on that as most places will not accept it. Hopefully the Rabies Challenge fund will change all of this.


----------



## tuckersmom20 (Dec 12, 2010)

When I talk about his seizures... It isn't supposed to cause one 

I came home to his crate a mess... All signs point to a grand mal.


----------



## Chocx2 (Nov 16, 2009)

I just titered mine, it is my understanding from the vet that there is only a couple of Vet Universities in the states that do a titer for Rabies thats why mine was so expensive, but it was under 300.00 and I think part of that was 70.00 overnight for the blood.

I'm still waiting for results.:smile:


----------

