Cat Given Dog Vaccine...

My male Charlie went in to be neutered and shots and instead of the core kitten vaccines they gave him dog. Their vets said he should he fine but the lady I spoke to looked qnd sounded worried. I'm curious if anyone has had this happen? Was your kitty okay? what sort of reactions should I look for to know something is wrong? They said if the injection site swelled but anything else...I'm like really freaking out. I went through my local humane society because money has been tight and I'm regretting not just using my vet...

Can you call your vet to ask? How is he doing now? Any swelling at the injection site or around the face? Lethargy, chills, and vomiting are other common vaccine reactions.

My vet has an emergency line but I was trying my best to wait till morning unless he shows symptoms of an emergency because it's going to be about $200 up front...he doesnt appear to be swollen anywhere but I cant judge a reaction properly because he was also neutered...so hes very out of it and lethargic. He had vomited but I believe he drank to much water. So I've taken everything away from him. His eyes dont look as glossy as they did and he is gaining some mobility back but he refuses to stay Locked somewhere...he was causing more harm to himself being locked and trying to get out then he is walking about the house drunk. Lol....but I've also never had a cat come home like this...when my cats came home they were groggy but mostly themselves and just laid down for a bit and were fine. My female didnt even need her pain meds last time cause she was fine. But hes so disoriented and clearly saving money to use this program wasnt worth it and I'm not doing it again....I just dont even know how to make him comfortable...he doesnt stay in one place for long....

Could be due to the anesthesia. He may be a bit slow recoveribgfrom it. I am not a vet, but I'm sure recovery rates vary between individual cats. I know it does for humans.

ArchyCat said:

Could be due to the anesthesia. He may be a bit slow recoveribgfrom it. I am not a vet, but I'm sure recovery rates vary between individual cats. I know it does for humans.

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Oh I dont doubt it could just be him. I've just never had a cat react so strongly and this is the first time I've ever used anyone besides my vet so I csnt help but be a bit worried its more than that.

Do you have some pate style food that you could add some water to and give him that?
No Money For Vet Care? How To Find Help And Save Your Cat's Life
I just read on a pet med help forum board that this also happened to a six year old cat and it not only survived, it had no problems. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this is what happens for your furbuddy!

I'm not sure if its pate but I do have some wet food. Hes finally laying with me. About 11pm (2 hours) I think I will try to offer him a small portion of it.
Ive read a few places that said their kitties were okay too but coming from someone who has so much anxiety I'm still being over paranoid. thank you for the good thoughts though.

I'd be all of that, upset, angry, worried but if you can, try and be as calm as possible. Cats are such super little sponges for our emotions and he needs lots of warm serene thoughts.

Reactions to anesthesia can be greatly different, not just between individuals but also between the same individual at different times - after my gall bladder surgery it was something like two days before my eyes would focus properly for reading, but after my brain surgery I was reading the very next day.

Your Charlie has had a scary experience - a vet visit! - it's not at all surprising that he needs the extra reassurance of being with his family, especially since he also feels kind of rotten in a way that he normally doesn't after a vet visit (or was this his first?). He may also have some feline notion of trying to "walk it off." Add to that the fact that he can sense your worry and I'd say that he's behaving normally for him; it seems highly unlikely that the symptoms you report are a reaction to being given the wrong vaccine.

At the very least, this does not rise to the standard of something that needs emergency intervention. Don't succumb to the temptation to take Charlie to an emergency vet. This is an especially insidious sort of temptation, because it masquerades as Doing the Right Thing, and your anxiety can tell you that the real temptation is avoiding the expense of an emergency vet. Don't let your anxiety run your life, especially not tonight. Just give Charlie some extra love and reassurance and get a good night's rest.

Margret

I would be worried, and very upset, angry, as well. I hope he is fine, no problems. But i would call my regular vet and ask what he thinks. Sending you guys best thoughts and wishes. do keep us updated on him.

I don't think anything will happen from the vaccine. Vaccines work by stimulating an immune response, and since cats don't get dog diseases his body may just ignore all the antigens, the same way his body would ignore it if he were exposed to canine distemper. Since panleukopenia is a parvovirus, the vaccine may even give some protection. . .but mostly I think his body will ignore it.

And, yeah, it's weird and a bit worrying to see them come out of anesthetic and wobble around drunkenly. But he should be back to normal by now.

How is he doing?

How is your cat today?

The facility that did neuter and vaccinations are doing you a great disservice. I think they just want you to shut up and go away. You have been poorly served.

They owe you more information. Just 'dog' vaccinations is insufficient. They owe you a list of vaccinations and the amount of each vaccination administered. Your own vet will probably want to know this information.

Even when given to dogs, the amount of the vaccination may be based on body weight. I would think the amount for a Chihuahua would be less than that used for a German Shepard.

When this is over, you might want to report this incident to the state licensing
authority for veterinarians.

Again, good luck.

ArchyCat said:

I would think the amount for a Chihuahua would be less than that used for a German Shepard.

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Nope (I've had small dogs and very large dogs so I know this personally). It's a 1ml dose no matter what. Vaccines are not medications; the size of the dose is not dependent on the size of the animal. The vaccine dose is determined by how many antigens are needed to stimulate an immune response. And the immune response doesn't vary with size.

As far as I know, there's only one kind of dog-specific vaccine a humane society would give (DHLPP). But there are several different brands so it wouldn't hurt to find out which one they used. But again, if his body isn't susceptible to those viruses, it simply won't bother mounting an immune response.

Thank you everyone. Charlie is doing a lot better today. Still sleepy but getting back to his normal self. I made him an appointment with my vet and will be having them finish any shots he needs at this time, & I won't be going back through the humane society and will be talking with my vet over what steps they would recommend I take against them. I didn't want to just blast them on yelp or something. I know how beneficial these programs can be to people and I do want it brought to someones attention as it seems like a pretty serious silly mistake but I'd rather address it with them directly and perhaps a higher power than make the whole world hate them. Theres to much hate already for it to be blasted like that.

Our rescues and organizations like the Humane society do a very much needed job. we do need them. and the majority of the time they do a great job, they are normally understaffed, and over worked. Human mistakes do happen. However i do think they need to be aware, and maybe put in place some safeguards to prevent this from happening to others. I know our human society has a local board of directors, and a manager. Can you maybe bring it to their attention? Not to Punish, which i dont think is what you are wanting to do. But to help safeguard other pets they may come in contact with?

Im glad your little guy is doing better

Bless your heart!!