Vaccines are one of the most effective ways to combat diseases in animals

When it comes to protecting your animals’ health, vaccination stands out as one of the most crucial and effective preventive measures available, writes Boehringer Ingelheim’s Dr Michelle Enslin.

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From the invention of a vaccine against smallpox by Edward Jenner in 1796, it took almost two centuries to eradicate the disease. French chemist, pharmacist, and microbiologist Louis Pasteur, who also developed the rabies vaccine, once said: “It is within the power of man to eradicate infection from the earth.”

That power has, so far, eradicated two infectious diseases: smallpox and rinderpest.

When it comes to protecting our animals’ health, vaccination stands out as one of the most crucial and effective preventive measures available.

This proactive approach to animal health management has proven to be particularly vital in regions where deadly diseases remain prevalent.

A 2017 study by Knobel, DL, et al. titled, ‘Rabies vaccine is associated with decreased all-cause mortality in dogs’, showed that the canine rabies vaccination reduced the risk of death from any cause by 56% in dogs aged zero to three months, by 44% in dogs aged four to 11 months, and by 16% in dogs older than one year.

When we consider viruses that carry a high risk of mortality, such as rabies or parvovirus, vaccination is unquestionably the best option for protection.

WE ARE FACING A RABIES EPIDEMIC LARGELY DUE TO INSUFFICIENT VACCINATION COVERAGE IN CANINES