My pet is staying at John Young Parkway Animal Hospital for boarding or a bath--what vaccines are required?

Dogs need to be vaccinated for distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, and parainfluenza (commonly called a distemper shot or DHPP). He/She also needs to have had a Bordetella or Kennel cough vaccine within 6 months of his/her stay. His/Her rabies vaccine also needs to be current. Cats need to be vaccinated for calicivirus, panleukopenia, and herpesvirus (commonly called a distemper shot or FVRCP). His/Her rabies vaccine also needs to be current. If your pet is not a patient at JYPAH, please bring paperwork from your veterinarian.

What flea/tick medications do you carry? Which one should I get for my pet?

We carry Comfortis, Frontline, Advantage, Advantix, Capstar, Promeris, Preventic collars and Sentinel. These products differ in flea vs tick protection, dog or cat, and method of application. Come in and see us for a consultation about which product would be best for you and your pet. If you are having trouble with fleas or ticks, we also recommend involving an exterminator to help with the environmental population.

I just adopted a puppy/kitten, what vaccines does it need? Why does he/she need a series of vaccines?

Puppies and kittens need vaccines starting as young as 6 weeks old, but can be given any time after 6 weeks. Puppies will need a DHPP (distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, and parainfluenza) vaccine every 3 weeks until they are 16 weeks old. Your puppy may also need a Bordetella depending on your pet's exposure. The rabies vaccine is given when the puppy is 16 weeks. A rabies booster will be given 1 year later, which will expire in 3 years.

Puppies need a series of vaccines because they receive immunity from their mother. The length of time of immunity varies between dogs, but is usually gone by 16 weeks, which coincides with the final booster. This immunity does help protect the puppy from disease but also interrupts the protection the puppy would receive from the vaccine. And since we don't know when the immunity ends and thus the period of susceptibility begins, we vaccinate frequently during this time. Kittens need at least 2 FVRCP vaccines three weeks apart. A rabies vaccine is given at 16 weeks of age. Boosters are the same as in dogs. There are other vaccines your pet may need depending on their environment and activities. We would be happy to discuss the options with you.

Does my pet need heartworm preventative?

Yes, we recommend heartworm preventative (Interceptor, Heartgard, Iverhart, Revolution, Sentinel) to all dogs in Florida. Heartworm disease is transmitted by mosquitoes. Even indoor dogs are at risk. It is much easier, safer, and cheaper to prevent heartworm disease than to treat it.

We are also offering heartworm preventative for cats. Even though they are not the normal host for heartworms, they can develop severe respiratory disease and even death from aberrant worms. There is no treatment for heartworm disease in cats, therefore prevention makes sense.

My pet is scheduled for anesthesia, what are the fasting instructions?

If your pet is scheduled for anesthesia, we ask that you not feed him after 6:00pm the night before and remove access to water after midnight. Your pet must arrive before 9:00am to allow for time for pre-anesthetic blood work.