Pet Vaccinations at your local hardware, feed, or pet store

You may have seen the advertisements for vaccination packages at local retail stores in our area. Some of these packages include fecal tests, heartworm tests and deworming as well. You also may find that you can buy vaccines for your pets at some of these stores to administer yourself. Is this a good idea?

Vaccines come in many types, combos and brands. Some vaccines are necessary (Parvo vaccine for example), and some are dependent on lifestyle risk (like bordetella / kennel cough or lepto). If you buy your own vaccines, you may not know if you are giving the right ones, or you may be giving too many. Vaccines are made by many different manufacturers, and some of them take great care to limit the number of chemicals in their vaccines while others do not. A cheaper vaccine may be less refined and more likely to cause reactions. Ask yourself these questions before deciding to give a vaccine yourself:

1. Do I know which vaccines to give my pet and how often?
2. Do I have the knowledge of how to mix and administer the vaccine safely?
3. Will the manufacturer of the vaccine pay for treatment if my pet has a reaction?

When your pet receives a vaccine at El Dorado Animal Hospital you can be sure it’s the safest vaccine available, and if there is any complication or reaction, the costs of treatment will be covered by the manufacturer of that vaccine, guaranteed.

Administering a vaccine may seem like a simple task, but it does take some training and skill. It is rare, but injury can occur, such as bleeding or even a laceration. If the vaccine is not administered correctly it may not provide the protection you expect. It’s always better for a trained veterinarian to administer a vaccine. It’s also important to know that you cannot administer a rabies vaccination yourself, because by law it is required to be administered by a veterinarian licensed in our state.

So what about those vaccine clinics? By law, they must have an attending veterinarian to oversee these clinics. So it’s the same thing as you would get at El Dorado Animal Hospital right? Not exactly! The vaccine clinics are only open for an hour or so, and then the staff is all gone. If your pet has a reaction to the vaccine that requires hospitalization, they will not be there to help. To keep their costs down (and, therefore, provide you with a low price) they often use cheaper, less refined vaccines. This increases your chance of a reaction. They also may not take the time to discuss lifestyle and risk with you, so your pet may receive vaccinations they don’t need.

The main cost differential between vaccine clinics and El Dorado Animal Hospital is the examination fee. You may think your pet doesn’t need an exam before vaccination, but they do. It’s critical to ensure a pet is in good health before administering a vaccination, to minimize risk of reaction and to be sure the vaccine works appropriately. But there is more to just an examination during your 30 minute visit at El Dorado Animal Hospital. We spend time with you talking about more than just vaccinations. An annual wellness visit and examination helps keep your pet healthy and happy. We discuss oral health, skin problems, orthopedic issues and much more. We can advise you on behavioral concerns you may have, nutritional counselling, and exercise advice. Often small, treatable issues are picked up on during an annual wellness exam before they become more serious problems.  In the end, paying a fee for an examination for a well pet visit can save you that money plus more by preventing serious problems.

So if you want the best care for your pet, and have all your questions and concerns addressed, make sure to schedule your pet’s annual wellness examination at El Dorado Animal Hospital. We will be sure to tailor the treatment plan and vaccination needs to your pet’s lifestyle and risk, and save you money in the end.

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