Schedule of kitten vaccination

Cats and kittens need several vaccines to prevent the occurrence of some frequent feline diseases, some of which may be fatal.

Unless your kitten is properly vaccinated, it is at risk of contracting one or many, possibly fatal, infectious diseases, as follows:

1. Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis (FVR);
2. Calicivirus;
3. Panleukopenia;
4. Chlamydia;
5. Feline Leukemia (FeLV);
6. Rabies;
7. Feline Heartworm Disease;

The initial shots of vaccine, as their boosters are designed to protect your kitten and build up immunity to the feline diseases mentioned above.

Vaccination of your kitten is recommended to be done according to the following schedule:

At 8 weeks old, the following vaccines should be administrated:

1. Distemper vaccine (panleukopenia virus);
2. Rhinotracheitis (feline herpes virus);
3. Calci virus (FCV);
4. Rabies vaccine;

At 12 weeks old, a new series of essential vaccinations must be administrated. This series should contain the calci virus, the panleukopenia virus and the herpes virus.

When the cat is 16 weeks old, should get some more vaccinations: the rabies booster, the feline herpes virus, the calci virus and the distemper vaccine.

After they reach 16 weeks of age, most kittens will no longer have any antibody protection from mother's milk and will be from now solely protected by vaccines.

Vaccinations are an important part of adopting a new kitten, and will help her to stay healthy and happy for years to come!

Facts about kitten vaccinations

Unless your kitten is properly vaccinated, it is at risk of contracting one or many, possibly fatal, infectious diseases, as follows:

• Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis (FVR);
• Calicivirus;
• Panleukopenia;
• Chlamydia;
• Feline Leukemia (FeLV);
• Rabies;
• Feline Heartworm Disease;

Most common of these diseases, which are highly infectious, can be prevented by routinely administering vaccination. We must vaccinate our kittens for the most important and common of these diseases in order to protect them. It is a fact that vaccines have an effective result in more than 95% of cases. In addition, routinely vaccinating your cat is cheaper than if you pay for treating your sick pet later. Also, vaccination reduces the possibility of virus transmission in the pet population.

Some facts that you have to know in order to be informed about this subject and to better estimate the cost of kitten vaccinations:

• newborn kittens receive protection from the first mother’s milk (colostrums) if mother was vaccinated; ask the person who sell you the kitten if the cat was vaccinated;
• kittens’ immune systems are immature so they are not capable of developing long-lasting immunity until at least 16 weeks from birth. Booster series for kittens must be given every 3-4 weeks, due to the developing nature of their immune system and due to the interference from mothers’ milk antibodies;
• cats should be vaccinated annually for most vaccines, after the initial booster series is administered to kittens, but some vaccines can be administered every 3 years; ask the vet about this;
• if a kitten has never received a vaccine before, and it is over 16 weeks old, it will need one additional dose in 3 to 4 weeks before starting on the annual or three-years schedule;
• neither a kitten nor a cat should be vaccinated unless it is in an excellent state of health. If you have any doubts about the state of your cat's health you’d better ask the veterinarian examine your pet and be assured of a good health status;
• ask the vet is the vaccine contains what is called an "adjuvant". Those with adjuvants are easier and cheaper to make. But there is some evidence that the inflammation appearing due to the adjuvant in the skin as it works, can (in rare cases) produce a type of malignant cancer;
• when comparing the prices of one clinic’s vaccines with others on the web you need to be sure that you are comparing like with like. When comparing, you need to know which diseases are being protected against and included in the vaccine course and if it contains and is dependent of an adjuvant;
• in some countries (e.g. the U.K.) ,which are currently free of Rabies, this vaccine is unnecessary;

Take a responsible approach in vaccinating your kitten because in this way you will protect it form further problems in life.