There are many highly infectious diseases that can affect your cat or kitten – and some can be potentially fatal. Fortunately, cats can be protected from many of these infections by being vaccinated. Vaccination is an essential part of your cat’s healthcare, so make sure your kitten has their initial course of vaccinations and then has regular booster vaccinations at their annual vaccination appointment to maintain protection.
When Your Cat Needs Their Booster Vaccines
Kittens are given their primary course of vaccine injections at around 8 to 9 weeks of age with a second dose at approximately 3 to 5 weeks later. These are followed around 12 months later by yearly boosters to help maintain protection. A multivalent vaccine is commonly given to provide protection against feline enteritis caused by parvovirus, and cat flu, a syndrome caused by multiple agents including herpes and calici viruses.
Why Cat Booster Vaccinations are Needed?
Some adult cat owners may think that once their kitten has completed their initial course of vaccinations, they’ll be protected for life. Unfortunately, this is not the case and booster vaccinations are needed to top up the cat’s immune system as the protection becomes less effective over time.
Some owners may be concerned that their cat doesn’t need protection or is receiving too many vaccinations. Don’t worry - your vet will take lots of things into account to provide a vaccination protocol tailored specifically for your cat. They’ll consider things like your cat’s lifestyle, whether they’re an indoor cat, and how much they’re at risk of coming in contact with an unvaccinated cat and catching a particular infectious disease, etc. This means your cat will receive the most appropriate vaccines for them.
Are There Any Side Effects to Booster Vaccinations?
Other owners may be worried about the side-effects of vaccinations. Your vet will examine your cat before any vaccinations are given to make sure they’re in good health. Your vet will also consider the benefits of protection against any problems the vaccine might cause. They’ll be happy to answer any concerns you may have.
Reactions are rare, but if your cat seems off-colour for a day or two after the vaccination, or the injection site is tender and swollen, contact your vet for advice.
Your vet will provide you with a vaccination record or vaccine schedule. If your cat has missed their booster vaccinations by a year or so, your vet may decide that your pet needs to start again with a new course of injections so they’re fully protected.
Your Cats Core and Non-Core Vaccines
The vaccines that are given to cats are classed as being either “core” or “non-core". Core vaccines are those given routinely to most cats because the related disease is highly contagious, widely distributed and potentially severe. The core vaccines for cats include vaccines for feline parvovirus, feline herpesvirus (FHV) and feline calicivirus (FCV), and annual boosters are required.
In the UK, most cats spend some time outside which means that they’re at risk of catching feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) from any unvaccinated cats. Feline leukaemia is a severe disease which is almost always fatal. Consequently, the FeLV vaccine is usually also considered to be a core vaccine.
Some concerns have been raised between the effectiveness of the FeLV vaccine and injection site sarcomas. Your vet can discuss the risks of these tumours developing with you. The chances of an indoor cat coming into close contact with an infected cat is very low and vaccination may not be necessary for these cats.
Non-core vaccines are given based on assessment of a cat’s lifestyle and risk of contracting the disease. The vaccine for feline bordetellosis is considered non-core. This is a respiratory disease that can outbreak in boarding catteries, rescue centres and multi-cat households.
It's recommended that cats have protection against this if they’re considered at risk. Catteries will ask for the cat’s vaccination record before their stay.
Vaccination against chlamydia disease and ringworm are also possible, but the risk of developing a severe infection is low in most cats. But if cats are immunosuppressed then these vaccines may be considered. Specially tailored vaccination protocols can be designed for cats living in breeding colonies where there are large numbers of cats living in close contact.
Vaccination against rabies is compulsory in many countries. Fortunately, the UK is currently ‘rabies free’ but if you plan to travel with your cat, vaccination is required. The vaccine needs to be repeated every 2 to 3 years to maintain protection, but booster vaccinations may be required more frequently if you take your cat abroad.
Protect Your Cat with Regular Boosters
Protection from vaccination isn’t lifelong in many cases so an annual vaccination appointment with your vet is very important. Cats will need to complete their primary course of vaccine injections and have regular boosters so they have full protection against severe infectious disease. Speak to your vet, they will always advise you on the best options to protect your cat.
Everypaw Cat Insurance
Everypaw's Cat Insurance comes with 24/7 unlimited access to vets and vet nurses that can help with your pet's health, care, nutrition and behaviour. So you can rest assured your kitty will be well looked after.
Treatment for vaccine-preventable conditions will be excluded from your cover if you've failed to vaccinate your cat, unless your vet's recommendation was against vaccinating.
Content provided from Vetstream's Vetlexicon Felis - www.vetlexicon.com/treat/felis
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