From:
Sukie Crandall
Date: 2011-06-16 15:25:07 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] Re: Distemper vaccine??
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Well, in this case what government approval means is that the vaccine has been tested for some very important things (and some of this testing is by use with reporting by selected vets and zoos, while others are done in labs as is needed for rabies vaccine testing):
1. Does it work? (Not all vaccines work in all species.)
2. Does it work for at least a year and/or what are the titer numbers like then?
3. Does it have only a low rate of problems like allergic reactions and side-effects?
4. Is it otherwise safe for the animals and people?
5. Does it cause the infection in the animals (which can happen with things like using vaccines grown in ferret cell lines in ferrets)?
So, in this case governmental approval means some very important things.
Other factors which can affect some vaccines, and possibly affect reaction rates given the past experience of a large shelter in the midwest, include but are not limited to improper storage including by retail or wholesale sellers, distributors and shippers, and the final destination.
When rabies vaccines were first being tested in ferrets the possibilities were narrowed down to three options. One of them turned out to protect ferrets agains rabies -- but only for SIX MONTHS even though it works for at least one year in dogs -- so that one was eliminated from the grouping. Another protected but it had a high number of neurological damage ferrets (and those surviving ferrets were actually adopted by a vet I used to know who kept them as her personal loves and provided all the special care they needed), That vaccine was also eliminated from the test group. My apologies, but that was decades ago so I do not remember which two rabies vaccines those were. The rabies vaccine which worked was IMRAB3. No one can assume that because a vaccine works in one species that it will work for a similar length of time or with a similar level of safety in a different species.
(BTW, for anyone reading since I have run into a few people who get this confused: yes, "species" IS the singular as well as the plural; "specie" refers to stamps, not animals.)
On Jun 16, 2011, at 7:26 AM, Mike wrote:
> I'm not sure which vaccine our vet uses but I would never put much stock in "government approved" anything.
>
Sukie (not a vet)
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/
http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
all ferret topics:
http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html
"All hail the procrastinators for they shall rule the world tomorrow."
(2010, Steve Crandall)
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