Rabies shot law?

[hurtingheart]

Hello,

So my vet just told me that my cat needs a rabies shot every year, and they don't want to see her for a checkup if she hasn't had one. They said it's the law, even though I've been going there for years without a problem. What I want to know is, is it true? I live in NJ USA. How can you find out if it's law where you live? I've never given my indoor cats a rabies shot beyond the first one. I don't trust vaccines in general.


If it turns out that she does need one, any recommendations or advice as to which one is better?

 

[Cat McCannon]

You'll wish you trusted vaccines should your cat ever contract rabies.

A quick search revealed this-
https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/documents/rabies/duration_rabies_vaccine.pdf

 

[neely]

TCS has an Article that not only discusses the subject of the Rabies Vaccine but whether indoor cats are at risk:
Do Indoor-only Cats Need Rabies Shots? – TheCatSite Articles

 

[stephanietx]

My state has a rabies vaccine law. My vet has told me that because my kitties have compromised immune systems and are strictly indoor kitties, that if there is a rabies outbreak, she would titer them to see if they needed a rabies vaccine. All of my kitties have had their kitten shots and rabies shots.

 

[Sajast]

So I am very pro-vaccine, been vaccinated myself for just about everything due to traveling. However, cats CAN be reactive to the adjuvants in the standard rabies vaccine. There’s a brand called Purevax that doesn’t have adjuvants and is much better tolerated. It’s a little more expensive, though. Ask for Purevax.

As a former vet tech they’re saying 2 things by telling you they won’t treat without a current rabies vaccine: 1) They’re not comfortable being complicit in helping you break a law that is the primary defense between humans and rabies and 2) They are really not comfortable treating rabies unvaccinated pets for liability reasons.

 

[fionasmom]

I am not an anti-vaxxer at all and as S Sajast said, I take just about any that are offered to me. However, my vet and I (vet has to file voluminous paper work) tried to get a waiver for my 15 year old GSD who was treated with immunotherapy for melanoma...along with the fact that he has about 10 other conditions, possible conditions, and probably will not live much longer. It was declined. At this point, they know who you are, so playing dumb was not going to work, and I vaccinated him with absolutely no problem at all.

As Cat McCannon mentioned, if you are in an area where bats might fly into your house or there could be encounters with other wildlife accidentally, your cat could be at great risk not only from rabies but from the consequences of what might happen to him under the law.