From:
Caitlyn Martin
Date: 2003-07-23 02:43:19 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] Reaction Rates for Rabies Vaccs?
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-Id: <27891041.1058970524897.JavaMail.nobody@magnesium.smartgroups.com>
Hi, Roger, and everyone else.
> We talk about distemper vaccs all the time, but I was wondering...
> Does anyone know the typical reaction rates - and severity of reaction
> - for rabies vaccs?
Let's put it this way... When Lady Ayeka reacted to her Merial Purevax
distemper vaccine this year it was the first time ANY of our ferrets
have reacted to a distemper shot. She goes back to the older vaccine
next year.
Rabies, OTOH, we've had real problems with. All of our ferrets except
for Pertwee and Kodo have had a reaction to their rabies vaccination at
one time or another in their lives. Two, Nyssa and Podo, had life
threatening anaphylactic (sp?) reactions. Podo vomited, had bloody
diarrhea, turned bright red, and became very swollen, starting with his
face. He had trouble breathing and basically collapsed. All of this
was within two or three minutes of vaccination. Our vet called it one
of the two or three worst reactions he had ever seen, and the worst he'd
seen where the ferret survived. Podo was about eight when this
happened, and had no history of prior reactions that we are aware of.
We are not planning on vaccinating him again, period.
>
> I don't make it a practice to wait in the vet's office after a rabies
> shot like I do a distemper shot, but I was wondering if perhaps I
> should.
Yes, absolutely. Generally the most severe reactions happen *very*
quickly, but Adric started vomiting and having diarrhea close to an hour
after vaccination. I had already left the vet's office and pulled a
wild U-turn in the middle of NC 54 to get him back there ASAP. We now
wait at least an hour after any vaccination.
All the best,
Caity and the never-endingly playful nine