tell me your feelings on adjuvant v.s. non-adjuvant vaccines

[rhythmicgoldfish]

Hi guys
I took Athena and Leia's kittens to the vet today, because my regular vet was in surgery I saw another vet at the practice. The veterinary practice i use has vets that practice both conventional western veterinary medicine as well as holistic and eastern style medicine. The vet i saw today strongly encouraged be to switch to a non-adjuvant vaccine and to vaccinate much lower on the limb than i was taught. she explained that Adjuvent vaccines have a higher risk of vaccine related sarcomas and that by vaccinating lower on the limb if a kitten did develop a vaccine related sarcoma later in life they would have a higher survival rate because the limb could be amputated.

after a bit of searching i found the vaccine that she recommended that i buy (PureVax Feline 3) i currently vaccinate with Fel-O-Vax PCT + CaliciVax by Fort Dodge which is killed not modified live

Just wondering what your take on Adjuvant v.s. non-adjuvant was. what you vaccinate with and why.

[rhythmicgoldfish]

and i do personally feel this belongs in the breeding thread rather than the health thread because my intention was to ask other breeder their take on vaccinating their kittens

[MowMow]

However, there are incredibly knowledgeable members who aren't 'breeders' that don't read this section.

Instead of getting an answer from 3 or 4 people you would get answers from 10-15 who have researched this issue extensively for their own kittens and can give you the pros and cons of each side.

I think it's a given that just because someone is a "breeder" it doesn't give them exclusive knowledge on kitten health.

[Sol]

I'll leave the post here at the breeding forum since you specifically ask for breeders experiences and knowledge. I think kitten care falls under the topic breeding.

/Sol, moderator

[Sol]

Personally I'll choose non-adjuvanted vaccines before adjuvanted, any day. MLVs produce a broader immune response than inactivated vaccines -> stronger immunity.

Inactivated vaccines will give fewer side effects, but when the side effects occur they're more sever than the ones from MLVs.

Ever since PureVax was released in Sweden I've chosen it for all my cats. Sadly my current clinic doesn't use it but they still have MLV. Inactivated vaccines are very rare here. Not commonly used at all.

[spotty cats]

Originally Posted by Sol

Inactivated vaccines are very rare here. Not commonly used at all.

It is the opposite here, majority of vets use inactive vaccines.

We use Fevac 3

[Kobster]

I'm not a breeder, but as a veterinary professional, we ONLY use non-adjuvent vaccines in cats. Research has consistently shown much lower risk of reaction and injection site sarcomas. Also vaccinating lower down on the leg is advised so that if the kitten does develop a soft tissue sarcoma, the leg can be removed and excission would be complete. If you vaccinate in a place that cannot be completely removed, it could be a death sentence for the cat should a sarcoma develop.

[rhythmicgoldfish]

thanks guys

I will be switching to non-adjuvant and vaccinating lower on the limb from now on, when i had my first litter of kittens i was a little overwhelmed by all the vaccine choices out their so i asked my mentor what she used and why and have been using that since, i think that it is odd that my regular vet never said anything but now that i know i am grateful to have seen the other vet at the practice who told me about the non-adjuvant vaccines