Before you enroll in our puppy training classes, it’s important that your pet has all their necessary vaccines. Vaccines not only prevent the spread of disease while they’re in the care of our Okemos puppy trainers, but help your puppy stay healthy for many years to come.
Here’s how puppy shots work, why they are so important to your puppy’s health, and what vaccines are required for all dogs at our facility.
Why Your Puppy Needs Vaccinations
Breast milk contains antibodies from the mother that protect her young. However, antibodies only protect puppies for so long before they need vaccinations from their local veterinarian. Most veterinarians will start vaccinations as early as 6 weeks old so puppies aren’t left vulnerable once the effects of the antibodies start to fade.
Your puppy will need vaccinations every 3 to 4 weeks until they reach 16 weeks of age. The will depend on the veterinary office you use and the puppy’s current health. Vaccines protect your puppy from getting sick until their immune system matures.
Recommending has helped decrease the occurrence of life-threatening or even deadly diseases. While certain diseases may be less common than they were 100 years ago, they still exist in the environment. For this reason, it’s important to protect your puppy from preventable diseases.
How Puppy Vaccinations Work
Vaccines work by triggering a response from your puppy’s immune system to create antibodies against a certain disease. That way, if your puppy is ever infected with that disease, their immune system will recognize it and release protective antibodies.
Additionally, vaccines can lessen the severity of symptoms and certain vaccines protect your puppy completely from getting sick. In short, they’re well worth it in the short and long term.
Why We Require Vaccinations
To enroll in our puppy school program, your puppy will need the first two sets of puppy shots and the . Your puppy will also need to be fully vaccinated to participate in doggy daycare and dog boarding for extended stays.
What Vaccinations are Required
Core vaccinations are absolutely essential for your dog to live a healthy life. They’re recommended for all dogs, regardless of their lifestyle. Unless there is a medical reason for them to not receive these vaccinations, it is highly encouraged.
The recommends the following core vaccines:
- Distemper
- Parvovirus
- Adenovirus
- Rabies
Non-core vaccines are still important, but may not be necessary depending on your puppy’s lifestyle and other disease risks. For example, we require the Bordetella vaccine for our dogs because they are frequently exposed to other dogs during puppy day care, puppy training, and dog boarding. However, your vet may not recommend the vaccine if you keep your dog at home and have no other pets.
The AAHA considers the following vaccines to be non-core:
- Bordetella
- Measles
- Parainfluenza
- Canine influenza
- Lyme disease
- Leptospirosis
Give Us a Call Today
Our dog daycare in Okemos, MI, offers a range of services to help you raise your puppy to be confident, well-behaved, and healthy. If you have any questions about what puppy shots we require, or wish to enroll in puppy day care, call Dog Gone Fun at (517) 204-7344 today. Feel free to also contact us online. We look forward to hearing from you!
This blog post has been updated.