FAST FACTS ON VACCINE REACTIONS
Most dogs and cats never develop vaccine-related problems. But vaccines are medications, and any medication has the potential to cause side effects. Here’s what you should know:
— Signs of local reactions to vaccinations include itching, swelling, pain, hair loss at the injection site, and cancer development at the injection site.
— Systemic reactions, which involve the entire body or a specific area other than the injection site, include allergic reactions; anaphylaxis and collapse; polyarthritis (lameness); vomiting, with or without diarrhea (most common in cats); trouble breathing; fever; and lethargy.
— The vaccines most likely to cause reactions are distemper, parvovirus, rabies and giardia.
— The breeds most at risk for vaccine reactions are Akitas, American Eskimo Dogs, Cocker Spaniels, Great Danes and Weimaraners. Any animal with a white coat and pink nose or a dilute coat color, like that of the harlequin Great Dane, is more at risk.
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