Few questions...lepto? Sentinel?

[JDS]

Lulu went for her final shots yesterday. My husband ended up having to take her because I had to take my daughter to the doctor. I sent him with written instructions & like a good dh, he followed them. Anyway, I knew to decline the lepto shot & had that written down for dh. When he told the vet no lepto, he said he had to listen to the spill about how dangerous it is, how common it is here, yada yada. The vet said the only breed they do NOT give lepto shots to is daschunds.

While I know lepto is a no-no, I could only tell my dh that the reason is that some yorkies have a bad reaction. The breeder & her vet both recommended NO lepto, so I know we did the right thing by declining. I'm just looking for some more concrete answers as to why its not advised for yorkies.

Second question...vet recommended Sentinel. Initially, she had recommended Interceptor & Comfortis. I declined Comfortis after reading some not good things...not to mention Lulu only weighs 2.2 lbs & I read over & over "not for dogs under 5 lbs". We gave Lulu her Interceptor on Aug 1st so she's covered for now for the heartworms but I'm only using Minksheen for fleas. Anyway, I've been keeping up with AllDogBoots' thread about Max & I'm a bit leary of the Sentinel. I realize that any med can cause a reaction, but I want to make sure I do all my homework before deciding what to use to decrease the chances that my baby suffers a major reaction.

I wanted to add that I was very comfortable & confident in the vet at our initial vet check weeks ago. She seemed very knowlegeable about yorkies in particular talking about all the things that they check for with this breed. I was just very surprised that they advocated for the lepto. Otherwise, I've been happy with this vet.

[Ellie May]

That i really the only reason most say not to give it to Yorkies. They have a high reaction rate. I suppose that's subjective though. Maybe it isn't as high as some other breeds, but it is higher than larger dogs. Sometimes lepto is so bad in an area that the vaccine needs to be considered (although some will disagree). When given though, it should be a single, not in a combo.

Sentinel is just Interceptor with Program. It is a good drug. The Program (for fleas) just makes it so they can't reproduce though. It doesn't kill them.

[JDS]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

That i really the only reason most say not to give it to Yorkies. They have a high reaction rate. I suppose that's subjective though. Maybe it isn't as high as some other breeds, but it is higher than larger dogs. Sometimes lepto is so bad in an area that the vaccine needs to be considered (although some will disagree). When given though, it should be a single, not in a combo.

Sentinel is just Interceptor with Program. It is a good drug. The Program (for fleas) just makes it so they can't reproduce though. It doesn't kill them.

Thank you. The vet told my dh that lepto is very common in our area. I didn't research it, b/c I just assumed that the cons outweighed the pros. Guess I better research it a bit more. She also said the we could catch it also.

Sentinel sounds ok. I'm just so leary of any drugs going into my baby. But since she's outside alot & we live in the good 'ol south which is horrible for fleas, she will need something. Oh, decisions...

[lil fu fu girl]

For Leptospirosis, there are currently many different vaccines available on the market for a wide variety of species and serovars. The ones currently available for dogs are chemically inactivated (killed) whole culture vaccine, which unfortunately, make them much more likely to cause vaccine reactions as opposed to most viral vaccines. Leptospiral vaccines are blamed for many of the vaccine reactions we see in dogs.

Some researches suspect that the added cellular debris and other extraneous material that find its way into leptospirosis vaccines might also account for the frequency of the vaccination reactions.

Leptospirosis is not considered a core vaccination by the AAHA because of these anaphylactic reactions.

As with any vaccine, certain groups of pups are especially at risk for reaction; such as yorkies. Vaccination of ones' pups is a decision which should be based on the area one lives, the risk of infection in that area, vaccination-based reactions, and the risk of unvaccinated infections.

Current researchers as studying the link between lepto, and chronic kidney and liver disease. Like any infection, lepto invades these two organs, and the toxins it produces damages their functionality.
In the 2007 Michigan study 25% of the unvaccinated healthy dogs showed antibodies to the disease which implies that infection had occurred prior, without the owners knowledge. CIN, Chronic kidney inflammation /Chronic Interstitial Nephritis is the leading cause of kidney failure in dogs, and CIN is often seen as the result of leptospirosis infection. Liver disease is also being studied further in connection with leptospirosis toxicity.
Hope this gives you some added information.....

[lil fu fu girl]

Originally Posted by JDS

Thank you. The vet told my dh that lepto is very common in our area. I didn't research it, b/c I just assumed that the cons outweighed the pros. Guess I better research it a bit more. She also said the we could catch it also.

Sentinel sounds ok. I'm just so leary of any drugs going into my baby. But since she's outside alot & we live in the good 'ol south which is horrible for fleas, she will need something. Oh, decisions...

Yes, you and your children are susceptible to the infection via your pup. Small children, or anyone who is immunocompromised should be very careful.

[JDS]

Thanks! How would I find out about the infection rate in my area? To weight the pros/cons? The vet did say that if she were to get infected with it, it would be very very dangerous. But I thought giving the vaccine would be more dangerous. Not sure now.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by JDS

Thank you. The vet told my dh that lepto is very common in our area. I didn't research it, b/c I just assumed that the cons outweighed the pros. Guess I better research it a bit more. She also said the we could catch it also.

Sentinel sounds ok. I'm just so leary of any drugs going into my baby. But since she's outside alot & we live in the good 'ol south which is horrible for fleas, she will need something. Oh, decisions...

I'd call the vet office back, and ask one of the techs to find out from the vet what the incidence and prevalence is for lepto in YOUR area. I mean, what the heck does "very common" mean, when it comes to lepto, ya know? That doesn't mean much to me.

I wouldn't give lepto unless there was very strong proof that the risk of getting the disease FAR outweighed the risk of the vaccine itself.

[Yorkie3]

Lepto is very common in our area and my Vet thinks that getting the vaccine far outweighs not getting it......I trust my Vet. I have 5 Yorkies and have not had a reaction to the vaccine in any of them. I do get it separately from the other vaccines though.

[lil fu fu girl]

Originally Posted by Yorkie3

Lepto is very common in our area and my Vet thinks that getting the vaccine far outweighs not getting it......I trust my Vet. I have 5 Yorkies and have not had a reaction to the vaccine in any of them. I do get it separately from the other vaccines though.

I personally get the shot for my two as well. I also do the shots separately and always give a steroid before hand.

Last year two dogs in my area were diagnosed with Lepto, and one was to far along to make it. Both were unvaccinated, and both were larger dogs. Whether to vaccinate or not is definitely a tough choice, and one that should be individually assessed.

Good luck JDS with whatever choice you decide upon.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by JDS

Thank you. The vet told my dh that lepto is very common in our area. I didn't research it, b/c I just assumed that the cons outweighed the pros. Guess I better research it a bit more. She also said the we could catch it also.

Sentinel sounds ok. I'm just so leary of any drugs going into my baby. But since she's outside alot & we live in the good 'ol south which is horrible for fleas, she will need something. Oh, decisions...

Yup, it's zoonotic, but you can also get it from farm animals, around slower moving, marshy water, etc. So you're still at risk...

It is a major problem in MI. Some vets here routinely give it and some don't. Teh vaccine caused a very serious reaction in Ellie (it wasn't a single though). For the years that she has not gotten it, she hasn't gotten the disease either. She doesn't spend much time outside though. If you decide to skip it, if any of the symptoms appear, it should be one of the first rule outs. It is a very serious disease and it is not always treatable, esp. if it has progressed.

[JDS]

Thank you all for your response. You've given me a lot to think about. I really wish I could have gone to the vet appt, but my daughter needed to go to the doctor so I couldn't make it. I will call them & talk with them about it. Lulu does go outside a lot. She potties outside, & quite frankly just loves to be outside. I guess I at least did the right thing not letting them give it to her with the other shots she recieved.

Off to research more & then call my vet...

BTW, anymore opinions on Sentinel?

[JDS]

One more thing, if I do decide that the lepto shot should be given to Lulu how long should i wait from her last shots? The receipt says she got DHP-P. Not sure what all of that is.

[Ladymom]

Sentinel and Interceptor both have the same ingredient, milbemycin oxime. If your Yorkie had no problems with Interceptor, there shouldn't be a problem with Sentinel. Personally, I don't like combination products. I prefer to space out heartworm preventative and flea medication by two weeks. I use Interceptor and Advantage.

FYI, milbemycin oxime is considered safer that ivermectin (Heartguard) as studies have linked seizures to ivermection in some dogs.

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by JDS

Thank you. The vet told my dh that lepto is very common in our area. I didn't research it, b/c I just assumed that the cons outweighed the pros. Guess I better research it a bit more. She also said the we could catch it also.

Sentinel sounds ok. I'm just so leary of any drugs going into my baby. But since she's outside alot & we live in the good 'ol south which is horrible for fleas, she will need something. Oh, decisions...

Please be aware that not only do we have fleas, but also mosquitoes!Sentinel covers fleas and also is a heartworm preventative. Mosquitoes carry heartworms! If you do not know about heartworms, please go to this site and read about them: American Heartworm Society Preventing heartworms is cheap....treating for them is not and can kill a dog!

There are other options for heartworms and fleas which you can discuss with your vet. I personally use Sentinel for two of my pups. It covers heartworms and fleas. On my others I use Heartgard (for heartworms) and Advantage (for fleas).

I have never had a problem with ANY of the heartworm or flea preventatives. Avoiding them on the remote possibility of an adverse reaction could be deadly for your pup. Heartworms kill.

[JDS]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Please be aware that not only do we have fleas, but also mosquitoes!Sentinel covers fleas and also is a heartworm preventative. Mosquitoes carry heartworms! If you do not know about heartworms, please go to this site and read about them: American Heartworm Society Preventing heartworms is cheap....treating for them is not and can kill a dog!

There are other options for heartworms and fleas which you can discuss with your vet. I personally use Sentinel for two of my pups. It covers heartworms and fleas. On my others I use Heartgard (for heartworms) and Advantage (for fleas).

I have never had a problem with ANY of the heartworm or flea preventatives. Avoiding them on the remote possibility of an adverse reaction could be deadly for your pup. Heartworms kill.

Thank you. Yes, I am aware of the mosquitos! Hate those little buggers! I gave Lulu her first heartworm preventative on Aug 1st...Interceptor. She did fine with it. Thanks to Ladymom I know that Sentinel has the same med for heartworms that Interceptor does. So, this makes me feel a bit better about it.