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Although the number of households with cats is now
greater than the number of households with dogs, less
than half of those cats receive regular veterinary
preventive care. Popular opinion has placed a lesser
value on the life of a cat than on a dog, whose
companionship is a bit more obvious to some. Why spend
money on it when you can "just get another cat"?
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And even if a cat guardian loves his or her cat, many
are ignorant of even the minimal steps that could be
taken to control preventable diseases, let alone the
advanced medical services that are available. All this
is true, despite the high profile cats have in our
society through the millions of dollars spent on cat
food advertising, cat magazines, cat shows, and stores
devoted to the plethora of cat paraphernalia.
Because you are on this page, presumably you're already
aware of the need for preventive health care for your
cat. The above facts should serve as a reminder as to
why you take the steps you do and as a reference so that
you can educate others about important cat health
issues.
Vaccinations
When a kitten is born, he doesn't have an active immune
system with which to fight infection. This leaves the
kitten vulnerable to diseases that adult cats would take
in stride. When a kitten nurses for the first time, he
receives immune protection from his mother in the form
of antibodies, present in the "first milk" or colostrum.
This type of immunity is called passive immunization.
The antibodies in colostrum are rapidly absorbed into
the kitten's bloodstream and distributed throughout the
body. The absorption of antibodies can take place for
only a few short hours after birth. After that time,
additional colostrum will do no good; the antibodies are
simply digested along with everything else and cannot be
absorbed. That's why it is so important that newborns
begin to nurse as soon as possible after birth or
Caesarean section, so that they can absorb as much of
the colostral antibodies as possible during that brief
window of opportunity.
Once the antibodies are circulating inside the kitten's
system, they go about the business of fighting off
germs. Antibodies don't last forever though, especially
those that are transferred from the mother. These
antibodies are depleted or used up through attrition, so
that over several weeks the amount of mother's
antibodies declines to insignificant and ineffective
amounts.
As the mother's antibodies are depleted, the kitten's
own immune system begins to shapen. At about eight weeks
of age, the kitten's immune system is sufficiently ready
to be challenged by the first inoculation against the
common respiratory viruses of cats. Because the residual
antibodies from the mother will interfere with the
development of a strong response to that vaccine,
kittens should be given boosters every three to four
weeks until they are 16 weeks of age. It is impossible
to predict just when the mother's antibodies are
sufficiently used up, and when the kitten's immune
system will respond appropriately to the vaccine. A
series of boosters is necessary to insure that the
kitten's immune system has been stimulated to produce
adequate amounts of its own protective antibodies.
Unlike kittens, healthy adolescent and adult cats are
fully capable of responding to a vaccine the first time
it is given. If the initial kittenhood vaccinations have
been delayed until after four months of age, these cats
should receive two inoculations, approximately three to
four weeks apart, against most of the common cat
diseases. The same rule of thumb should be applied to
adult stray cats whose vaccination status is, of course,
unknown. The first inoculation will simulate an immune
response. The second inoculation imparts a stronger and
more long lasting response, a sort of memory to the
system. Keep in mind that although older cats do not
have to worry about maternal antibodies interfering with
the first inoculation, one inoculation is not sufficient
to produce adequate protection. They must have the
second one that results in the long lasting effect.
After the initial series of vaccination, cats should
receive booster shots once a year in order to keep the
memory of that immunity strong. Cat viruses are much
more stable than human flu viruses, and annual
vaccinations are usually adequate to protect them,
unless the cat is severely stressed.
As a cat ages, so does the immune system. The immune
response can wane, leaving the older cat vulnerable once
again. Annual vaccinations keep the immune response
strong, and are an important part of geriatric care.
There are cats who become ill with these diseases even
after vaccination. The cat may not have received an
adequate number of boosters, or there may have been a
large amount of maternal antibodies to interfere with
the inoculation series. No vaccine will protect 100 per
cent. A cat can come in contact with a particularly
powerful or virulent strain of a virus that overwhelms
the immune system.
Or the immune system can be diminished due to stress
associated with boarding, moving, inclement weather, new
members of the household, poor nutrition,
immunosuppressive viruses, or other underlying diseases.
Compared to unvaccinated cats, cats who have been
properly vaccinated will develop only a mild form of the
disease during a "vaccine break." Some cats will carry a
virus in their body, undetected and without causing
disease, until some stress lowers their resistance.
Vaccinations may be ineffective in these cats.
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