Cat Health

Vaccine guidelines promised by the American Association of Feline Practitioners and the Academy of Feline Medicine1 have finally been completed. In January 1997, the Advisory Panel on Feline Vaccines of the American Association of Feline Practitioners and the Academy of Feline Medicine (the AAFP/AFM), established practice guidelines for vaccinating cats.
AAFP Vaccine Recommendations
Feline Vaccination Protocol
Vaccines continue to play an important role in the control and prevention of feline infectious disease in an overall preventative health care program for cats. The ubiquitous nature and the seriousness of infection with feline panleukopenia (FPV), feline viral rhinotracheitis (FHV-1), feline calicivirus (FCV), and rabies justifies vaccinating all cats against these diseases. These vaccines will be referred to as CORE vaccines. Vaccines against chlamydiosis, FeLV, FIP, and ringworm will be called NON-CORE vaccines. Factors that affect the immune response to vaccines should be considered prior to vaccine administration. Cats at high risk of exposure, such as those entering boarding facilities, or shown frequently at cat shows, may benefit from more frequent revaccination. DOI studies indicate that three-year rabies vaccines demonstrate effective immunity.
While vaccine administration is not an innocuous procedure, the benefits of vaccination far outweigh the risks for the majority of cats. The objective of feline vaccination protocols should be to vaccinate more cats in the population, vaccinate individuals less frequently, and only for the diseases for which there is a risk of exposure and disease.
Vaccine site recommendations should be followed in accordance with those established by the AAFP and the Vaccine Associated Feline Sarcoma Task Force. It is important to standardize vaccine sites.
Administration of vaccines more frequently than that recommended by the manufacturer is neither endorsed nor recommended. A routine physical examination is recommended prior to the administration of vaccines to cats. CORE vaccines should be administered to healthy FeLV and FIV infected cats. Killed virus vaccines are preferred for immunocompromised patients because of the potential risks for vaccine-induced infections with modified live virus vaccines.
Vaccinating cats receiving corticosteroid therapy is controversial. The actual risks associated with vaccination of pregnant cats are poorly documented. It is recommended that individuals administering vaccines record the following information in a permanent medical record of the patient: date the vaccine was administered, name of the person administering the vaccine, vaccine lot number or serial number, expiration date of the vaccine, name of the vaccine, vaccine manufacturer, and site of vaccine administration.