AVMA Position
The AVMA Council on Biologic and Therapeutic Agents (COBTA) has thoroughly reviewed information on dog and cat vaccines and has issued two reports:
- Principles of Vaccination - JAVMA Sept. 1, 2001
- Report on Cat and Dog Vaccines - JAVMA Nov. 15, 2002 3
Take Home Messages
Principles of Vaccination
- Vaccinations are an important part of preventive medical practices, which, in
turn, are an important part of providing animals with optimal health care.
- Vaccination is a potent medical procedure associated with tremendous benefits
and rare, but real, risks for animals.
- Individual animals will require different vaccines and vaccination programs.
- Revaccination recommendations should be designed to create and maintain
clinically relevant immunity while minimizing adverse event potential.
- Veterinarians should consider creating a core vaccination program for most
of the animals in their practice area.
- Veterinarians should consider creating a non-core vaccination program designed
for a minority of animals in their practice area.
Report on Cat and Dog Vaccines:
- Segregation of Core and Non-Core Antigens
Core Vaccines:
- Vaccinations are an important part of preventive medical practices, which, in turn, are an important part of providing animals with optimal health care.
- Vaccination is a potent medical procedure associated with tremendous benefits and rare, but real, risks for animals.
- Individual animals will require different vaccines and vaccination programs.
- Revaccination recommendations should be designed to create and maintain clinically relevant immunity while minimizing adverse event potential.
- Veterinarians should consider creating a core vaccination program for most of the animals in their practice area.
- Veterinarians should consider creating a non-core vaccination program designed for a minority of animals in their practice area.
Report on Cat and Dog Vaccines:
- Segregation of Core and Non-Core Antigens
Core Vaccines:
These vaccines protect against diseases caused by pathogens that are widely distributed in North America and pose a substantial risk of disease in essentially all dogs and cats.
| CORE ANTIGENS | |
| Canine | Feline |
| Distemper | Panleukopenia |
| Parvo | Rhinotracheitis |
| CAV type 1 (hepatitis) | Calici |
| Rabies | Rabies |
| Leukemia | |
Non-core Vaccines:
These vaccines protect against diseases that must be carefully considered when there is limited potential exposure because of animal lifestyle, non-uniform geographic distribution or lower virulence of the disease.
| NON-CORE ANTIGENS | |
| Canine | Feline |
| CAV type 2 (adenovirus) | Chlamydia |
| Parainfluenza | FIP |
| Corona | Ringworm |
| Leptospirosis | Bordetella |
| Lyme | Giardia |
| Bordetella | FIV |
| Giardia | |
The only comment made regarding duration of immunity in the COBTA report is:
- "There is a growing body of evidence that by following a successful kitten (puppy) vaccination series and revaccinating at one year of age, the subsequent revaccination interval can extend beyond one year."
- There are no references presented to specifically support this observation.
Regarding serologic testing, COBTA concluded:
- It is impossible to determine the immune status of an animal relative to all the infectious diseases without conducting challenge testing.
- Serologic results do not appear to be a sensitive indicator of an immune response for some diseases or vaccines in cats and dogs.
- Variations exist among and within laboratories, as well as a lack of validated sensitivity, specificity and confidence intervals, leading to the conclusion that serologic testing is generally unreliable.
- An animal with a titer generally regarded as protective can become ill as the result of challenge, possibly because of overwhelming exposure or immune suppression.
