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Old June 10th, 2014, 11:47 AM
crochetingnana crochetingnana is offline
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Vacciations and calici virus

Hello, I am crochetingnana and I am a newbie. I have a general, opinion type question. Thanks for letting me join...

I got a 2 month old Maine Coon kitten from a cattery in Northern California. The week before we picked her up she was spade and received her first vaccination. 3 days after we got her home she became very sick. High fever, nasal discharge and lameness. We took her to the vet and he said she had developed the calici virus. He prescribed an antibiotic to stop the nasal activity and gave her an antibiotic shot to boost her. For 3 days I nursed her, using a dropper to give her water every 2 hours and watched her temp. Long story short, she is fine and beautiful and now 10 months old. My concern is that she has had NO additional vaccinations. She is inside only. We have ferals that we feed. I use antibacterial wipes on my feet and legs every time I come in from feeding them. Our vet says we should wait until our Maine Coon is a year to finish her vaccinations. Did she get the calici virus from the vaccination or from exposure from the cattery vet's office or just develop it as a result of an infestation at the cattery? AND is it safe to go ahead and vaccinate her? Will she get calici again due to the previous bout? I am so concerned about her getting sick again, but the alternatives that vaccinating prevents would be awful too. Is my vet being overly cautious about waiting? Do you have an opinion you can share with me?

Thank you for replying and I look forward to being a part of your forum community.
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Old June 10th, 2014, 07:33 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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Hi crochetingnana, welcome to pets.ca!

Sorry to hear about your kitty's illness. I had something similar happen to a feral that I took in....she developed the limping form of the Calicivirus shortly after she was vaccinated. Took about 3 weeks but she's fully recovered now. Honestly, I will not be vaccinating her again (she's also 100% indoors). I think your vet is good to be cautious, and even if you do go ahead with boosters when she's a year, I personally wouldn't give anymore after that. I think over-vaccination causes a whole host of issues that can sometimes be worse than the diseases they're supposedly preventing. Plus, many of the vaccines last much longer than the manufacturers would have you believe, often for life. If you're concerned about your girl's immunity, you could have your vet run a titer test.

For my cats (all 5), I've decided to keep them as healthy as possible by feeding them the best food I can (which I consider to be a balanced raw food diet). This should keep their immune systems in optimal shape. They've all received their initial FVRCP vaccine (no rabies or FeLV vax) but won't be getting any others, ever.

Oh, and my comments aren't meant to tell you what to do..... they're just to give you my perspective on my own situation.
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Old June 10th, 2014, 07:38 PM
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pbpatti pbpatti is offline
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Welcome to pets Crochetnana! Sugarcatmom is very wise when it comes to kitties.
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Old June 11th, 2014, 01:57 PM
crochetingnana crochetingnana is offline
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Thank you sugarcatmom and pbpatti for your replies and welcome . I didn't know that vaccinations lasted longer than the recommendations suggest. That is good to know. You aren't the first person to tell me about raw food diet. I will be looking into that. Winnie's fever lasted 3 days and then it was a slow but steady progress to full health again. The lameness disappeared as did the nasal discharge. She is 'hell on paws' rather than wheels. . . if I dare say that. She has a rescue big brother from another mother who shares our house with us. They make regular laps around the house chasing each other. Seriously, they fly through here when the mood strikes them. I appreciate you.
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Old June 11th, 2014, 03:21 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by crochetingnana View Post
You aren't the first person to tell me about raw food diet. I will be looking into that.
Super! If you need any specific info, let me know. I've got a ton of great links on the subject, starting with this amazing resource: http://feline-nutrition.org/


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Originally Posted by crochetingnana View Post
She has a rescue big brother from another mother who shares our house with us. They make regular laps around the house chasing each other.
I love the sound of cats thundering around the house! I'm sure I giggle every time my guys get the zoomies. It's incomprehensible to me how fast they can fly down the stairs without getting hurt.
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Old June 11th, 2014, 06:50 PM
crochetingnana crochetingnana is offline
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Zoomies? I LOVE that! ♥
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