allergic reaction to shots

[tyanne]

Gracie went to get her 8 week puppy shots yesterday and after we had been home for about 2 hours, I noticed her lips and eyes were puffy.. I called the vet immediatly and he said she was having a reaction from the shots..He also said to give her 1/2 tsp of Benadryl and give it an hour...If it has not gone down to bring her to him.. I did go down Thank goodness!<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm8.gif" border=0> Now what I want to know is if this is a common thing and if it will happen again when she goes back in three weeks for the next series... Has this ever happened to any of you??? Let me know!!! Thanks,,a worried Mom<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm36.gif" border=0> , A fat lipped Gracie<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm24.gif" border=0> and just plain ole' Ozzie<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm3.gif" border=0>

[Mickamack]

Yes, absolutely! We took Mickey for his first shots at about the same time. He blew up like a balloon within 1.5 hours. His entire body swelled up and if you didn't know better, you would think that I had a little shar-pei! That's no exaggeration as to how he blew up. So I know how scared and upset you must have been.

Mickey had to go in to the dr's that evening. He gave him an injection for immediate relief, but we had to do the benadryl for the rest of the night, until Mickey's reaction was under control.

You will want to mention this to your vet. They changed the brand of Mickey's vaccinations. Sometimes the allergic reaction can be only with one brand vs another. He/She will definitely want to mark it in your puppers chart.

Before Mickey goes in for any future vaccinations, we have to give him a dose of benadryl BEFORE HE EVEN GOES FOR THE SHOT. This way, the medicine is already in his system, to protect against the allergic reaction. Since doing this, Mickey has never had another problem with his shots.

Best of Luck!

[dutchman]

Yes it is not that uncommon. This is a major reason that no animal should be left alone for at least several hours after receiving any new medication / shot. One of the little dachsie girls my folks had experienced a very severe reaction to her shots when we called and the vet had us rush her back he said it was a good thing we called. Her reaction was severe enough and progressing fast enough the vet thought we could have lost her if we had waited another half hour to hour before calling. Her airways were beginning to become restricted and she could have stopped breathing. It took the vet about 2-4 years to find a brand of vaccine that didn't cause a reaction in that little girl. SO yes make sure any vet who ever treats Gracie knows of her previous reaction. Make sure you can watch her after any shots. She may outgrow the reactions or the vet may be able to find a brand that will cause little if any reaction.

Good luck,

Tom

[Owen's Mom]

Since Owen's had all his puppshots (thank you rescue!!) I haven't had to deal with the possibility of allergic reactions since I've had him. Rather than just blindly giving him his booster shots every year (except for rabies, as I have to by law) I have blood drawn for what is called Titer testing. They will send the sample away to a lab and check the levels of the vaccine in his blood. If they're at a passing level, he doesn't need to get any shots. I feel better about not re-vaccinating every year.



------------------
~~Amy & Owen~~
22.8 lbs of Black and Tan Standard Muscle!!
www.dachshundrescue.org

[Penny's Aunt]

Your vet should have it CLEARLY MARKED on his chart that he is allergic to the vaccine. It's probably the leptospirosis part of the vaccine mix. ALWAYS remind the vet verbally, however, of the allergy. Most vets will give a little shot of epinephrine before the the vaccination, to prevent the reaction. Write the dosage for your dog(s) right on the label of the Benedryl, since it's good for bee stings, etc, too. My vet said you can give 1 ml or cc for every pound of body weight, & overdosing is not a problem. There are 6 ml/cc in a measuring teaspoon.

BTW, when the vet says teaspoon, they mean the measuring kind, not the coffee spoon kind, because those can vary. I'm sure you all knew that!

p.s. A dog with previous vaccine reactions is not a dog to vaccinate at home. I'm sure you knew that, too.

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Penny's Aunt on October 19, 2000 at 01:27 PM</font>

[WOTANSMUTTI]

Thanks all for posting this again. I tend to forget this during the year...

Wotan is also had allergic reactions to his shots- but the kind I gave him at home. I mentioned this to the vet and he is careful.

P.A.- thanks for the benedryl dosage infor. What kind do you buy? It has to be the liquid type from the descriptions you gave.
(DUH)

<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm3.gif" border=0> Sonja

[Penny's Aunt]

People wtih big dogs just give the Benedryl capsule, but with little dogs, I think it's safer to use the liquid, so you can be more precise. My vet said the dosage isn't really crucial, but.... when you're in a panic, you don't want to have to fumble for that scrap of paper that got dropped into the Junk Drawer somewhere. That's why I write the dosage for our animals right on the bottle, so everyone knows. You can use it on cats, too, but the vet said it isn't quite as effective on them.

BTW, I use the WalMart generic brand, but I make sure that the strength is the same: 12.5 mg. The only real difference is the price: you're not paying for Benedryl's advertising costs. (And with as many bee-stings as my pup got this summer, maybe I should buy stock in the company!)