Have you been recommended to have your goat vaccinated for rabies? Perhaps you don’t have a goat but own other livestock or even pets. Have you wondered if rabies vaccines are just a bit silly in today’s age? After all, where are these rabid goat herds? Could this all be a money scam? Nearly into […]
Continue ReadingA Bit of Mouse Brain and a Rabies Vaccine
In our last podcast, we tackled the common question of why you might give a rabies vaccine that is labeled for one species to an animal of a different species. This podcast is an expansion of this topic and covers some of the oddities of vaccine production. In the early 1880s, Louis Pasteur worked to […]
Continue ReadingWhy Do I Give Goats Sheep Vaccines?
Why oh why, would I give goats sheep vaccines? Seems counterintuitive right? We put horseshoes on horses, give cats cat food, and give goats… what? Another species’ vaccines? Are they getting shortchanged? The short answer is no, and the longer answer contains two reasons, one immunologic and the other administrative. When you become infected with […]
Continue ReadingWest Nile Virus: From Introduction to Endemnicity
The weather around the globe continues its unpredictable pattern. Many areas of the US are experiencing unusual flooding for this time of year. With flood waters, come hordes of tiny vectors, harboring many infectious diseases. Among these, a few are zoonotic. In 1999, a veterinarian at the Bronx Zoo in New York City noticed an […]
Continue ReadingEradication, Elimination, and Endemicity
Modern science has made some tremendous breakthroughs in the last century. Diseases that used to plague livestock have now been brought under control or eradicated completely. Only two infectious diseases can be considered completely eradicated: smallpox in humans in 1980, and rinderpest in ruminants in 2011. When a disease occurs in a geographic region, animal […]
Continue ReadingDuration of Immunity
The USDA recently announced a transition to Single Tier Label Claim for all veterinary biologics. Effective for all newly licensed vaccines, the decision retroactively applies to all currently licensed vaccines over the course of several years. This change promotes label clarity for both veterinarians and pet owners and reduces some of the competitive confusion between […]
Continue ReadingRabies
If you prefer to listen to podcasts, feel free to play the audio version of this blog by clicking on the player above. Podcast: Rabies Length: 5:20 minutesWritten and read by the author
Continue ReadingEquine Vaccinations
Horses are very susceptible to many vaccine preventable diseases. Some of the more common ones are EEE/WEE/VEE, rabies, West Nile, and tetanus. These are considered “core” vaccinations for all horses. Vaccination for other diseases, such as influenza, EHV 1 & 4, and strangles are based on risk. Some horses have higher risk of exposure to […]
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