Pet Vaccinations

My cat was recently taken to the vet to her yearly appointment. As part of the visit, vaccines are given to her. The last few times (maybe 3) that we have done this, our cat got sick shortly after, and each time it has been the same problem.

She begins to develop two red sores, one on each temple of her head, and the hair around the sore begins to fall out. The sore gradually grows, as does the region of hair loss. Last year, at least (maybe others, I didn't notice) she also had a few sores at apparently random locations on her body; a couple on each side, if I remember right, but those ones didn't cause any noticeable hair loss. Fortunately, there turned out to be a simple treatment, a drug called Cortizone (sp?) removes the sores pretty quickly with just a single treatment, also administered by our vet.(costing extra $$) In about a week, the sores are gone. (I don't know feline anatomy very well, but I suspect there is something like lymph nodes or some other thing that is common to all the regions)

This happened a couple years in a row before we clued in to the probable cause. This year, knowing that it was an issue, we asked the vet to give her something along with the vaccination (costing extra $$) so that she would not get the sores to begin with. Unfortunately, it didn't work, and as I write this, there are two small red sores on her temples and at least one on her side. (the temple ones are by far the largest, most visible, and first to appear, every time)

So my mom was researching cat vaccinations this afternoon on the internet, and apparently this is a fairly common problem, and we are questioning whether our cat really needs these vaccinations or not. I can see some merit in getting a set of vaccinations initially, like people do, but to continue giving them year after year, particularly when they are causing my cat this additional discomfort, does not seem kind nor necessary.

I've read a little about human vaccinations, and I realize there is some issue of conspiracy surrounding those, although I consider that particular conspiracy to have no basis in truth. People, however, do not get yearly vaccinations, nor (scaling it roughly to human lifespans) even vaccinations every decade. I have my own health records right here, and I got 3 sets of vaccinations during my first year, one in my second, one at age 5, and then a single shot at a couple other times when I was about 16. Unless a new disease threat comes around, no others will be necessary.

I guess what it comes down to, is that I am wondering what other peoples experiences with vaccines are, positive or negative. I'm hoping to keep this discussion mostly in regards to vaccinating cats, and I suppose pets in general, but feel free to throw in stuff you know about human vaccination, as well, when relevant.

Particularly, I am looking at:
-are vaccinations helpful to my cat?
-are vaccinations hurting my cat?
-how often does my cat need to be vaccinated, or does she at all?
-can I get my cat vaccinations that don't give her these weird sores?

HAH!!! JK i dont think anyone cares about your cat, really. Maybe you shouldnt go to the vet that often....cats are'nt like humans....DUH!!! They dont need an effin # every flippin year........who would want one?????
You should sue them, thats wut i would do, they probably put somethin in there so that you could come back with your cat and ask for a treatment and you have to pay more for that......ch, screw them...just dont take her to that place anymore.......oh, or him.

Interesting,.

I do suggest having the Vaccination done against cat leukemia and Aids,

I have had to endure a terrible time with a cat i had who ended up having cat aids then also its baby's, They all took so ill and died, went from major colds to weeping eyes and no matter what the vet gave them it would not help,

I now ALways have my cat vaccinated, and neutered,
I'm not sure about the other vaccination's, but something i will try and also have a read up on,

Hey, we found a pretty cool vet in my area.

WE take our cats and dogs there.
Last month we had to kennel our dogs for a few days, the kennel asks for proof of immunization first.
This vet will take a blood sample and check for antibodies, if the level is high enough, the kennel will accept the dogs. Which they did.
The test is cheaper than the shots.

They said they will do this for cats as well.
What this means is, you can put off their annuals as long as the blood levels are high enough. She was even able to estimate how long before the next shot would be required.
Maybe you could find such a vet in your area?

My dog has no vaccinations. I doubt anyone could convince me because he is 2 years old and as healthy as can be. Neighbors tell me they have never met a dog with so much personality, spunk, and life in general. Please, do not take my word for it, do the research yourself. There are countries out there that don't even sell dog food! nevertheless get their pets vaccinated. It's a FARCE!

I think it depends on your cat's lifestyle. If it goes outside a lot and sees other cats, I would think vaccinations would be much more important than if you keep it indoors all the time. Since I live in an apartment and my cat never goes outside and just sees a couple neighbors' cats and dogs out in the hallway from time to time, I haven't really thought yearly booster shots were necessary.

Yes, good thinking. This box is too small to post all of the knowledge I've gotten during my research into these shots.

Most of these shots contain Mercury! That is all I have to say.