Vaccination - To Keep Your Cat Healthy And Happy

Just like any other pet, your cat also needs regular shots of vaccination to protect it from a host of life-threatening diseases. In spite of their fiercely independent nature, cats are highly vulnerable to several diseases. Only vaccination can save your feline friend from most of these dreadful diseases.

Though some vaccinations may not be effective in completely avoiding certain diseases, they definitely help to check the spread of disease to an alarming stag. In addition, a vaccinated cat has fewer chances of passing on a disease to other cats. So, it is absolutely necessary to vaccinate your cat to provide it a long and healthy life.

Recommended Vaccination Shots For Cats

Vets recommend that you take your kitten for its first vaccination when it is about nine weeks old. After a second dose of vaccination in the twelfth week, the cat would be scheduled for annual booster injections. It is particularly important to ensure that your cat is vaccinated against rabies. Rabies vaccination is especially applicable in the case of cats that hang out a lot with other cats in the area and often return home after a nasty fight.

Other highly recommended shots for cats include vaccination against Feline infectious enterovirus, Feline herpesvirus, Feline leukaemia and Feline Chlamydophila. Sometimes, the cat's blood would be tested to determine if it has developed a natural immunity to any of these diseases. If there is no trace of natural immunity, the vet would go ahead with the vaccination.

Feline Vaccination Documents - A Must For Cattery Stays Or During Travel

To gain access to a cattery, your cat must present documentation of all necessary vaccination. Catteries insist on vaccination records to confirm the health of your cat and to ensure that they are not taking in a sick cat that could infect the other cats in the cattery. Although vaccinated cats may sometimes develop mutated forms of diseases, vaccination offers them an enhanced immunity to prevent the disease from getting life threatening.

Most European countries have very strict laws regarding travel of pets like cats. While traveling with your cat, you are required to carry the complete set of records related to your cat's vaccination and general health. Almost all European countries insist on evidence for rabies vaccination to permit travel within the country. In fact, you may even need to present proof of your cat's deworming treatment to gain admission to certain countries.

In the absence of such vital vaccination records, you may have to give up your cat for quarantine custody for a period of up to six months. To avoid such an upsetting experience for you and your cat, it is best to seek the advice of a travel agency and procure all the recommended documents well in advance of your travel date.

Although there have been rare reports of cats developing adverse reactions after a vaccination, getting a cat vaccinated remains the most effective solution to keep it protected from feline diseases.