Something we really want to share with you here at Chihuahua World is our experiences with Chihuahua Vaccinations and Operations some of our Chihuahuas have had which haven't gone as expected.
Let's start with when our customers come to choose a puppy or when they collect their puppy usually a question pops up regarding what inoculations they have had or what they need but not everyone takes on board our concerns and experiences so immediately seek advice from their Vets.
If you have read our article on Vets and Our Pets you will have worked out that with some Vets everything is not what is seems so some of our customers have reported that they have felt frightened by what they have been told by their Vets so have immediately had their puppy vaccinated. Whilst the majority of the time things go OK unfortunately there can be major complications or even worse fatal consequences when administering any foreign liquid into such a small animal.
In the 20 plus years we have been breeding we have had 3 fatalities and countless sick puppies due to the standard course of puppy inoculations that Vets give, usually from the age of around 8 weeks and then a second 2 weeks later.
What do Puppy Inoculations Cover?
- Canine distemper virus, a virus with no known cure.
- Canine Parainfluenza, which is a cause of ‘kennel cough’.
- Infectious canine hepatitis, which usually affects dogs less than two years old.
- Leptospirosis, a bacterial disease spread by infected urine or contaminated water.
- Canine Parvovirus, a highly contagious viral disease that’s especially severe in puppies.
What many of you probably don't know is that the vaccines are made up of very small doses of the disease itself, yes you have read this right, the liquid that is administered has a few infectious organisms from each virus so that the puppy's immune system fights them by "hopefully" producing antibodies.
It's an obvious fact that Chihuahuas are very small so when you think that they receive the same size dose of vaccine as a German Shepherd you should hopefully understand the difficulty some Chihuahuas have recovering from this experience. As we have mentioned we have had countless sick puppies over the years and regrettably fatalities so Chihuahua World's policy is "not to vaccinate" any of our puppies due to their size and weight and of course our past experiences.
We have always advised our own customers of our experiences but we answer so many email questions from different people asking about their puppy's health so the first thing we ask is "have you been to the vets recently for any vaccinations?" On an estimate we would say atleast 75% of the time the sickness is vaccine related but what we also hear is the guess work their vets have told them as to why they believe their puppy is sick and that it is not vaccine related.
Just a quick story here.When we used to vaccinate our puppies one fell incredibly sick the day after her first dose of the puppy innoculation course so was immediately back at the vets that day where unfortunately she passed away, being as this was the third death we had endured, this prompted us to immediately investigate further especially because she was due to go to her new home that weekend. After paying out for blood tests and a post mortem it was concluded that she had suffered a severe allergic reaction to the dose from which she just wasn't strong enough to recover from.
Could we have sued the vaccine manufacturer? Of course not.
Why not? Because manufacturers of these drugs will even tell you themselves "There is no guarantee with their vaccines and that they expect a small percentage of animals to actually contract a disease from their vaccines because the animal may have an incompetent immune system to fight the vaccination."
Check this out. we found a disclaimer from one of the UK's biggest Veterinary Vaccine Manufacturer's data sheets that says: "immunocompetence may be compromised by a variety of factors if . . ."
- the dog is genetically defective
- there is something wrong with the dog's diet
- the dog is unhealthy when vaccinated
- the dog is stressed at time of injection
- the dog's immune system is incompetent
- the dog is exposed to a virus before or immediately after vaccination
- the dog is taking immune suppressant drugs such as steroids
- the vet administers the vaccine inappropriatelythe dog is incubating disease at the time of vaccination
Like most companies producing medicine there is always a get out clause hidden away somewhere in small print so when we had asked our many different vets over the years regarding the risks of the vaccinations 90% new nothing other than they are perfectly safe and you have nothing to worry about.
Most vets and breeders haven't had the long term experience with such small dogs so have no knowledge to tell you anything like we have written here, this is a very passionate subject for us here at Chihuahua World due to the experiences we have endured, but if you may be thinking this will never happen to you then Google this subject as it is a massive one and one that needs to be studied in depth by the people who regulate Vets and Drug manufacturers.
Here are some links to click so you can have a read of some interesting articles.
HEALTH HAZARDS OF ROUTINE VACCINATIONS
WHY ARE VETS GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER?
THE DOG VACCINE BOOSTER DEBATE
Chihuahua Operations
Some of the reasons why your Chihuahua may need an operation are:
- Sustained an injury
- Internal organ issues
- Neutering
- Dental work
- Cesarian
Operations can be a life or death situation due to the illness or injury your Chihuahua is suffering but it can also be a life or death situation solely down to the operation itself, anytime your Chihuahua has been anesthetized will be a very dangerous time.
From a very sad experience a couple of years back we lost a pregnant female and all her puppies due to a so called competent Vet that obviously administered the wrong amount of anesthetic. This type of incompetence leaves us feeling so angry especially when you think that vets have our animals lives in their hands every time we take them to them so it almost puts the blame on us because we chose that vet. Determined never to experience this again we spoke with The London Veterinary College to ask advice on the best way for a vet to treat our Chihuahuas when they need to be anesthetized. What they pointed out was although vets are given the basic training for giving an anesthetic they are not an anesthetist who would have been trained solely for this area of an operation therefore they advised we should in future "seek an experienced small animal hospital or at least go to a Vet's Practice that has a qualified anesthetist."
It seems like most things in life we all learn from experience but when our little angels are as precious to us as they are it breaks our hearts everytime we lose one of our Chihuahuas through neglect from the people we turn to help our animals whether it be a Vet or the Drug Manufacturers.
Sharing our experiences, as we do throughout our website, will hopefully educate Chihuahua Owners to be aware of the real possibilities they may face during their Chihuahua's lifetime.