How Often To Vaccinate An Indoor Cat?

[drmroth]

I have a 2.5 year old rescue, Dusty, that had all his vaccines when he was a kitten and then again when he was a 1.5 years old. He is an indoor cat but we added another rescue in October of 2016 to the family and she, CoCo, came with an upper respiratory infection that we treat daily with Viralys. Although Dusty was exposed to CoCo's URI he only had a few sniffles for a couple of days and has been fine ever since.

I'm being told by my vet that it's time for Dusty to be vaccinated again and that he needs to get them annually. I don't remember vaccinating every year for the cats that I've had in prior years. I think I may have vaccinated them for the first two years and that was it. Does this sound right, should I be vaccinating every year?

 

[_spadekitty]

Yes, its typical to get vaccines boostered yearly.
I'm the same; we've had dogs all my life but I don't remember really taking them to the vet at all, let alone every year for vaccines. Its definitely not something thats uncommon or untrue though.

 

[daisyd]

Mine is 10 months so I'll find out soon as my vet sends a text reminder every time she's due her flea and worm treatment !! I was told its a booster every year ! Maybe it's a new thing

 

[MeganLLB]

We never vaccinated cats that were strictly indoors, or gave them monthly flea and tick or heartworm treatment. In the fifteen or so years of owning cats, One time one cat got a few fleas that were tracked into the house and we treated it and it never happened again. Never got any kind of disease either, and how could they when they are inside all the time?

I vaccinate my one that I take on walks outide and she tries to escape all the time- that one I do treat and vaccinate.

 

[Elfilou]

It is pretty standard for vets to want to vaccinate cats every year. I doubt if it's really necessary, and there's a lot of contradicting information on the Internet about it - but I will still have her vaccinated every year I guess. Better safe than sorry.

 

[momto3cats]

Vets usually want to vaccinate every year because that's what the vaccine manufacturers have traditionally recommended - because they hadn't tested their vaccines longer than one year. It's also an easy way to get people to bring their pets in for a checkup. Studies have shown, though, that most vaccines really don't need to be repeated that often, if at all. The American Association of Feline Practitioners recommends giving the basic FVRCP shot once every 3 years. They have a lot more information here if you're interested. Feline Vaccination Advisory Panel Report | American Association of Feline Practitioners

 

[stephanietx]

Unless you foster or travel with your pets, it's really not necessary to have your pets vaccinated after their kitten shots and first rabies shot. All of my kitties have had kitten shots and 1st rabies shots. After that, I don't have them vaccinated. They do go to the vet yearly for a check up, just no shots. I also have 3 special needs cats and that's another reason I don't vaccinate yearly.

 

[Draco]

Mine are strictly indoors and no other animals come into my home from the outside, so I don't vaccinate mine either. I did for the first few years of their lives. Then one of my cats "turn feral" at the vet and needs to be sedated every time I take him, that's when I stopped taking them. I don't want to cause stress on him nor sedate him every time. I haven't taken them in 5 years now.

When they hit senior years and clearly getting on in age, I'll be taking them back to the vet for checkups.

 

[_spadekitty]

Make sure you check the laws on rabies where you live though if you choose not to vaccinate yearly. Some places it is illegal for your animals to not at the very least have a rabies shot every year/three years.
If your cat were to somehow get loose and bite someone, it could turn into a big problem if your cat doesn't have an up to date rabies shot.
Even if your cat bites someone at the vets office and isnt up to date on rabies it could be an issue. Even the most friendly cats can get pretty angry at the vet

 

[daisyd]

Just checked with Gracie's vets and she's due her SRV and leukaemia boosters in December then once a year . They don't give rabies jabs here however cat flu and leukaemia apparently common ! Although she is indoor only I'd rather vaccinate

 

[aradasky]

This is the best thing I have read about vaccinations. Vaccinations cause cancer and cats are over vaccinated. My four are indoors, however, there is a large bat population around here, some how like to rest over my front porch. There is a chance one could fly in. Then my cats would need to be quarantined. Our county has found rabid bats. I am having a mobile vet come to look at all four's teeth and give rabies shots. First shots of any kind in years. And first vet visit in years.

Vaccines for Cats: We Need to Stop Overvaccinating

 

[maggiedemi]

daisyd- They don't give rabies vaccinations in London? I didn't know that.

 

[daisyd]

daisyd- They don't give rabies vaccinations in London? I didn't know that.

No, we are rabies free in UK. Obviously pets brought in or going abroad are required to have the vaccine

 

[maggiedemi]

Wow, I didn't know that. That is awesome that the UK is rabies free. I wish the US could do that.

 

[Willowy]

It wouldn't be possible for the US to become rabies-free. The UK is an island so they can control the importation of animals and they have a very strict quarantine process. Same for Australia, Japan, etc. The US is far too large and is open to the entire continent so that just can't happen, unfortunately.

There never was a reason for vaccines to be given yearly. Humans don't get vaccinated yearly, except for flu but only because it's a different strain every year. Vaccines confer long-lasting immunity, exactly how long varies but the vet associations think 3-5 years is entirely safe. As far as I know, 3-year rabies vaccine is recognized in every state so some people might want to look into that. Cats are very prone to inflammatory diseases so it's best to reduce exposure to things that cause inflammation, including vaccines.

 

[drmroth]

WOW! Thanks all for the replies... Both my cats had all 3 vaccines their first year. Again, the vet is recommending a yearly exam and the fzrcp(?), Feline Leukemia and Rabies, although since they're indoors I don't have to get all 3. The rabies vaccine is not a requirement where I live but I did give it to them the first year.

I'm thinking I should just give the important ones which I think are the Leukemia and Fzrcp. It's not a money issue but rather I don't want to give vaccines that aren't needed.

BTW - such cute cats!

 

[Willowy]

Feline Leukemia Virus is only spread by direct and prolonged contact with the bodily fluids of an infected cat. It's generally not recommended for indoor-only cats. If you don't live in a rabies-free area I would recommend rabies vaccine over FeLV vaccine.