CENTER TWP — If the majority of dogs receive the recommended vaccinations, it decreases the chances of all dogs in a region contracting a disease.

That's the word from Dr. Nicole Palumbo, a veterinarian at Butler Veterinary Associates and Emergency Center on North Main Street Extension.

Palumbo said the vaccines currently administered to the dogs of responsible pet owners in the county have been updated or changed over the years to protect the canine population in the most effective way possible.

Palumbo said rabies is a vaccine that has been administered to dogs for decades, but its timing has changed due to research.

“The rabies law used to be a yearly vaccine, but that is something we don't do anymore,” she said.

Dogs are now vaccinated for rabies every three years, she said.

She said puppies taken on by their new owners are usually 8 weeks old. That is when they receive their first rabies shot as well as a distemper shot.

The longtime vaccination known as “distemper,” Palumbo explained, is actually a combination shot that protects dogs from distemper, parvovirus and a few other illnesses.

The distemper vaccine at one time covered coronavirus, but Palumbo said Butler Veterinary does not vaccinate dogs against that virus anymore.

The American Animal Hospital Association does not recommend vaccinating dogs against coronavirus because it is a mild disease that generally occurs in dogs younger than 6 weeks old. Coronavirus usually clears up on its own without medical intervention, according to the AAHA website.

Most puppies get a distemper booster every three to four weeks until they are 16 weeks old. If a puppy arrives at the her office at 10 to 12 weeks old, they will likely receive two distemper boosters.

Pups are also vaccinated against leptospirosis at 10 to 12 weeks old, Palumbo said.

While some vets give pet owners the option to have their dogs immunized against “lepto,” Butler Veterinary administers it to all dogs.

Once thought to be contracted through the bacteria in stagnant, swampy water, Palumbo said dogs can contract the disease through the urine of carrier dogs that have not been immunized.

She said human beings can also contract leptospirosis, which causes vomiting, diarrhea and flu-like symptoms.

In dogs, lepto can affect the kidneys and liver, Palumbo said.

“We have so many dogs vaccinated against it that we don't see it that much now,” she said.

Another shot administered to dogs at 10 to 12 weeks old is the Lyme disease vaccination.

“That is optional, but in this area, because we are seeing so much Lyme, we recommend it as a core vaccine,” Palumbo said.

Lyme disease

Lyme disease is spread through deer ticks, which attach to a dog's skin.

She also recommends using a tick prevention program so ticks cannot spread the disease to dogs. Collars, monthly drops, pills and other methods are available to repel or kill ticks on a dog.

Palumbo said if a deer tick attaches to a dog that is vaccinated, there is a 95 to 99 percent chance the dog will not get the disease.

The company Butler Veterinary uses for Lyme disease vaccines will pay for a dog's treatment if a Lyme test turns up positive within a year of the vaccine being administered, Palumbo said.

She said she was told Lyme disease was not a big deal when she arrived in the Butler area seven years ago.

“Within a year or two, it blossomed,” Palumbo said.

She said her practice is now seeing Lyme disease in the winter.

“We used to tell people their dogs only needed (Lyme prevention) in the spring and summer,” Palumbo said. “Now, it's year 'round.”

Puppy care

She counsels prospective pet owners to call a veterinary office within the first few days of welcoming their puppies or new dogs into their homes, and to keep new puppies away from other dogs until they receive their shots.

Palumbo also cautions those who get a puppy from a breeder to know and trust the breeder, as some puppy owners are erroneously told that puppies are vaccinated.

“Then they've spent thousands on a dog that may not make it (if it contracts a disease),” she said.

The health of the county's entire dog population can be kept safe from disease if owners remain vigilant throughout the dog's life, Palumbo said.

“The biggest thing is to make sure you keep your animals up to date on vaccines,” she said.