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I was looking at the other posts and it seems like the obligatory yearly exam is national. I'm about to do mine with Maxi next month. Rabies shots are yearly or every three years. I've heard rabies is more prevalent in the south than it is up here in the PNW. We have alot of squirrels up here and they carry distemper more than rabies. Maybe a yearly rabies is required in warmer climates.
One year or three year rabies depends on the vaccine given. There is a one year purevax non-adjuvanted and a 3 year purevax non-adjuvanted, and a 3 year adjuvanted.
My youngest cat (now 9) had a bad reaction to the rabies vaccine when she had her 2nd booster (at age 2) she hasn't had a rabies vaccine since, but I get a titer done every 2 years. She still shows protection 12 times what an adult human would need, after no vaccine in 7 years. My state doesn't recognize titer as sufficient rabies protection so if she ever bit someone (not likely) she would have to be quarantined for 6 months in a kennel or at a vet.
My senior cat (now 15) I struggled a long time with whether to get her done. Last month she was due for her 3 year purevax. She'd never had trouble with it, but she has IBD and elevated liver enzymes. I really didn't want to put toxins into her and I know a titer whould show protection, but she has fear aggression at the vet and a bite to someone is highly likely, in fact almost a given at the vet. I don't think it would be a problem at MY vet, they know her and her health history. But what if she had an emergency and needed to be seen by a stranger and bit someone?
So I had it done, much to my regret. She was sick for days, and is still having a bit of trouble two weeks later. I can only hope it didn't do more damage to her liver. But...I couldn't risk her having to suffer a 6 month quarantine.
Yes to annual visits, no to annual vaccines. After the core vaccines George should only need a purevax rabies vaccine once every three years, if it's a law where you live. No other vaccines. Otherwise I'd just have a titer run every few years for rabies if it isn't required by law.
But the vet check ups are important for a number of reasons. To establish a relationship with your vet. Your vet and you should work as a team in George's healthcare, you need to know each other.
And George needs to know the vet and the vet needs to know George, including what what is normal for George.
In the event he is ill it won't be so strange to you or George or the vet.
Vets know what to look for, so may catch something you didn't notice.
Including: dental health, ear health, eye health, any odd lumps anywhere, and anything odd feeling internally (the vet palpates the underside of the cat to check things as well. The vet can feel the bladder, any stool in the colon, the liver, and the kidneys this way)
The vet will listen to his heart and lungs also.
All this is important.
I read applications for an animal rescue, and I've been seeing a lot of cat parents that don't take their cat to the vet unless they're sick. I want to cut and paste your response and sent it to all of them!!
Yes to annual visits, no to annual vaccines. After the core vaccines George should only need a purevax rabies vaccine once every three years, if it's a law where you live. No other vaccines. Otherwise I'd just have a titer run every few years for rabies if it isn't required by law.
But the vet check ups are important for a number of reasons. To establish a relationship with your vet. Your vet and you should work as a team in George's healthcare, you need to know each other.
And George needs to know the vet and the vet needs to know George, including what what is normal for George.
In the event he is ill it won't be so strange to you or George or the vet.
Vets know what to look for, so may catch something you didn't notice.
Including: dental health, ear health, eye health, any odd lumps anywhere, and anything odd feeling internally (the vet palpates the underside of the cat to check things as well. The vet can feel the bladder, any stool in the colon, the liver, and the kidneys this way)
The vet will listen to his heart and lungs also.
All this is important.
THIS!
Our younger cats go annually. The older cats go every 6 months, and our geriatric guy goes in ever 3-4 months (depending on what's going on).
The vet will also ask questions that may seem benign (how is your cat's appetite?) but that, in combination with a physical exam, may catch a possibly medical issue early.
I can honestly say that regular vet visits have extended or improved the lives of our cats. We caught our Benny's hyperthryoidism as it was just appearing and got him on medication right away, for instance.
I've had my cat, George, since he was about 6 weeks old. At about 3 months old I brought him to the vet for his first and then second round of shots, including rabies.
He is strictly an inside cat, but he does have an outside enclosure on the deck.
I'd prefer not to give him any unnecessary vaccinations at this point. He's healthy (except for one day 2 weeks ago when he was "under the weather" for a day.
Anyway, is it necessary and do you bring your cat to the vet every year? Thanks for your help and opinions.
(ps- attached is the obligatory George picture)
It’s only necessary if you really care about them. Our three are strictly indoor but they get their regular check ups, shots, etc. We do it because we worry about their health, just the way we do about our own. Also, we had, about two years ago, a bat get into the house. We discovered the cats had killed it but we all had to go through rabies protocol, including boosters for the kitties, even though they had their regular shots. So, even though they’re indooor cats, things that impact their well being can get into the house.
And if you’re worried about the rabies vaccine, go with the annual shot, not the two year one. The annual shot has much lower incidence of associated problems.
Vets told me the 3 year rabies shot is....well, three years worth of powerful shot at once. A big onslaught on the system. So we do one year at a time.
I've had my cat, George, since he was about 6 weeks old. At about 3 months old I brought him to the vet for his first and then second round of shots, including rabies.
He is strictly an inside cat, but he does have an outside enclosure on the deck.
I'd prefer not to give him any unnecessary vaccinations at this point. He's healthy (except for one day 2 weeks ago when he was "under the weather" for a day.
Anyway, is it necessary and do you bring your cat to the vet every year? Thanks for your help and opinions.
(ps- attached is the obligatory George picture)
ABSOLUTELY it is necessary. I've had my cat for 5 years and every year during her adoption month anniversary she goes in for a wellness exam.
You are not a vet, and your cat may have something wrong with them that you can't tell just by looking at them. Just because a cat *looks* healthy that doesn't mean there isn't something wrong. My cat has FORL, and you'd never know from watching her eat that she maybe has a tooth that is so bad that she flinches when you touch it. She's had 12 teeth pulled in 5 years, including 3 of her canines, and my vet's radiography equipment is good enough that he can already predict that the one she still has may come out as soon as next year. We get an indication of what's in store on the dental front during that annual exam, because the vet always finds at least one tooth that is questionable, and with FORL, because it is degenerative, where there is one, there are usually others. She lost 5 teeth last year alone.
It is always a good idea to get fecal tests done every year as well as a urinalysis and blood panels on at least an annual basis when your cat gets older. My cat is 8, nd she will be going back to have her triglycerides and kidney numbers retested in August, because they were on the high side in February.
As for vaccines, you ALWAYS follow your state's protocol on rabies, because you don't want to get into legalities stemming from not being UTD if he bites someone. The only other vax my own cat gets is FVRCP, and she is on a 4-year schedule for that.
I don't get a bunch of shots at once whether for my dogs or cats. Funny, when a vet wants to give them at once they believe that's okay. But when I want them separate, then they say well, then they have to be # weeks apart. I must be missing something on that.
I also don't get the long term rabies. I get a year at a time.
My vet never does more than one shot at a time. When Shelly needed both her rabies and FVRCP boostered we did the rabies first, because there is a deadline for that, and the FVRCP 2 weeks later at no extra charge.
I was looking at the other posts and it seems like the obligatory yearly exam is national. I'm about to do mine with Maxi next month. Rabies shots are yearly or every three years. I've heard rabies is more prevalent in the south than it is up here in the PNW. We have alot of squirrels up here and they carry distemper more than rabies. Maybe a yearly rabies is required in warmer climates.
NY State is another hotbed for rabies. Our protocol is either 1 or 3 years, and you can get medical exemptions if needed.
I read applications for an animal rescue, and I've been seeing a lot of cat parents that don't take their cat to the vet unless they're sick. I want to cut and paste your response and sent it to all of them!!
And then they complain about the bill for that illness being so high.
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