But truth always prevails.   In January 2004, 31 vets went to the extreme lengths of signing a letter, published in Veterinary Times (UK), stating that annual vaccination ‘constitutes fraud by misrepresentation, fraud by silence and theft by deception'.   I called annual vaccination fraud ten years ago, fully aware that, if proven wrong in a court of law, I could be sued.   I wasn't.  

The truth is that we are vaccinating too much.

• When an annual booster vaccination with a modified live virus (MLV) vaccine (i.e. Distemper , Parvovirus or Fe Distemper) is given to a previously vaccinated adult animal - no added protection is provided. Modified live virus vaccines depend on the replication of the virus for a response. Antibodies from previous vaccines do not allow the new virus to replicate. Antibody titres are not boosted significantly, memory cell populations are not expanded. No additional protection is provided.

• There is no scientific data to support label directions for re-administration of MLV vaccines annually.

• Vaccines are not harmless. Unnecessary side effects and adverse events can be minimised by avoiding unnecessary vaccinations.

In short: annual vaccination is a waste of time. Once immune, no added protection is provided by repetition. Crucially, “vaccines are not harmless”.

COBTA announced that we should vaccinate every three years instead. But you don't need to vaccinate your animals every three years, either - because immunity lasts for years or life (RD Schultz, et al). And every shot comes with risks.

The Merck Manual, produced by a giant vaccine manufacturer called Merck, states that patients with B and/or T cell immunodeficiencies, or from families with B and/or T cell immunodeficiencies, should not receive live virus vaccines due to the risk of fatality (ie death). Features of B and T cell immunodeficiencies include inhalant allergies, food allergies, eczema, dermatitis, neurological deterioration and heart disease. Does your dog fit this picture?

Scientific studies link vaccines in with a wide range of ‘itis' (inflammatory) diseases.

In 1983, Frick and Brooks demonstrated that vaccines trigger conjunctivitis and dermatitis in dogs.

Canine Health Concern's (CHC's) vaccine survey, involving over 4,000 dogs, found that 56.9% of all dogs in the survey with conjunctivitis first developed it within three months of a vaccine shot, and 61.2% of dogs with dermatitis first manifested symptoms within this crucial timeframe. Our premise is that if the vaccine has no bearing on subsequent illness, then only 25% of all illnesses should begin within each three-month period of the year. Most conditions began within a week of the shot.

We also found that 2.7% of all dogs surveyed had colitis, with 56.9% of cases occurring within three months post-vaccination.

Inflammatory reactions are explained by Dr Larry Glickman, and Dr Harm HogenEsch at Purdue University. The team studied the effects of routinely used vaccination protocol on the immune and endocrine system of Beagles. One control group was not vaccinated and the other group was vaccinated according to manufacturers instructions.

The vaccinated group developed significant levels of autoantibodies of fibronectin, laminim, DNA, albumin, Cytochrome C, transferring, cardiolipin, and collagen. When vaccinated, dogs begin to attack their own biochemistry: they become allergic to themselves. One finding in the CHC survey, for example, was that 53.7% of dogs with kidney damage first developed the condition within three months of a shot. In the Purdue study, one of the biochemicals being attacked post vaccination is laminin - and laminin coats kidney cells.

Similarly, autoantibodies to collagen might explain the locomotor conditions recorded against cats and dogs in a veterinary practice record survey conducted by the vet Ilse Pedler. Vaccine components have also been found in the bones of arthritic patients, and other studies show that vaccines cause arthritis.

We need also to be alarmed that the Purdue study showed that vaccinated dogs develop autoantibodies to their own DNA, indicating that vaccines cause genetic damage.

A high number of behavioural problems were found to arise post-vaccination in the CHC survey: 73.1% of dogs with short attention spans first developed them within three months; 72.5% developed nervous/worrying dispositions; and 64.9% began to display behavioural problems.

Encephalitis, inflammation of the brain, is an accepted sequel to vaccination. The Merck Manual states, "In acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (post infectious encephalitis), demyelination can occur spontaneously, but usually follows a viral infection or inoculation (or very rarely, a bacterial vaccine), suggesting an immunologic cause." This points to a connection between vaccine-induced brain inflammation and behavioural problems in both humans and animals.

Our research recorded 73.1% of dogs with epilepsy developing it within three months of a vaccine event. Merck lists epilepsy as a symptom of encephalitis. I wonder how many vets think to report post-vaccinal epilepsy? Merck, you will remember, lists epilepsy as a symptom of encephalitis, and vaccines as a cause of encephalitis.

In America, vets are vaccinating cats in the tail or leg so that they can amputate when cancer appears. 81.1% of dogs reported to have a tumour or growth at vaccine site in the CHC survey first developed it within the three-month post-vaccine period.

These are but some of the studies linking vaccines to life-changing or life-threatening illnesses. Dr Jean Dodds, an American vet and researcher, has also written a number of scientific papers to correlate MLV vaccines and a rise in immune- and blood-mediated diseases such as cancer, leukaemia, autoimmune haemolytic anaemia, thyroid disease, and Addisons.

In April 2004, the veterinary vaccine industry, supported by the British Small Animal Veterinary Association, fought back with research showing that there is no increase in illness post-vaccination. The research was paid for by the veterinary vaccine industry, and we are told it is independent. Will you trust your dog's life with it?

Catherine O'Driscoll is founder of Canine Health Concern, and author of the book, ‘What Vets Don't Tell You About Vaccines'.

Our thanks to Catherine for making this article available to The Pet Health Portal

You can become a member of Canine Health Concern, and receive its quarterly newsletters, by sending a cheque for £12 to CHC, PO Box 6943, Forfar DD8 3WG, Scotland.