A big part of veterinary healthcare these days is preventative medicine and the backbone of this is vaccinations. Cats should receive regular vaccinations in order to protect them against deadly diseases, but the regimes have changed over the years. Many owners are confused as to how long vaccinations last for and it’s not surprising, with five licensed brands of cat vaccine in the UK covering seven different diseases in varying combinations, each with slightly different recommendations! Here, we’ll aim to clarify the situation so we can understand how the vaccinations work and exactly how long each one can be expected to last for.
Table of contents
What are vaccinations?
Vaccinations are a means of administering a small portion of either a live, inactivated or killed pathogen which under normal circumstances could cause disease but when delivered in this way, act to stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies against the disease so that if the body encounters it again in the future, the defences will be ready to prevent against any illness.
What diseases can we vaccinate cats against?
The vaccinations currently available in the UK for cats will provide protection against:
- Feline calicivirus (FCV)
- Feline herpes virus type 1 (FHV)
- Chlamydophila felis
- Feline parvovirus (FPV)
- Feline leukaemia (FeLV)
- Bordetella bronchiseptica
- Rabies
FCV and FHV (and to a lesser degree, Chlamydophila felis) are the main causes of ‘cat flu’.
FPV causes feline enteritis/panleukopenia.
FeLV is only a concern for cats that venture outside or are in close contact with cats that do
Bordetella bronchiseptica can also cause respiratory issues but is mainly a problem in rescue centres or breeding colonies.
Rabies is not present in the UK, but the vaccination is required if entering from overseas.
How do I know what my cat has been vaccinated against?
Confusingly, different vaccine manufacturers will label their vaccines in different ways:
- Nobivac Ducat/Purevax RC = FCV and FHV
- Nobivac Tricat trio/Purevax RCP/Feligen RCP/Versifel CVR = FCV, FHV and FPV
- Purevax RCPCh = FCV, FHV, FPV and Chlamydophila felis
- Leucofeligen RCP/FeLV = FCV, FHV, FPV and FeLV
- Fevaxyn Pentofel = FCV, FHV, FPV, FeLV and Chlamydophila felis
- Nobivac FeLV/Purevax FeLV = FeLV
- Nobivac Bb = Bordetella bronchiseptica
Does my cat get vaccinated for everything every year?
Usually, no. Historically, this was often done, but over the years, more and more research has come out to show that some vaccines last much longer than others. Therefore if we take this blanket approach, there is a high likelihood of over-vaccination.
The standard schedule is that a kitten will receive their first vaccination around 8 weeks of age, then a second 3 – 4 weeks later. They should then undergo an annual ‘booster’ every year after this. What you might not realise is that what is contained within this annual ‘booster’ vaccination is likely to vary year-on-year in order to comply with current recommended protocols.
So…how long do cat vaccines last for?
The most recent evidence points to vaccinations against cat flu (FCV and FHV) and enteritis (FPV) providing a 3-year long immunity. This is appropriate for low risk cats (solitary, indoor only cats that will never visit a cattery), however, for those cats at higher risk (any cat that goes outside or into a cattery), it is advised that FCV and FHV are repeated every year, as although some immunity lasts for 3 years, the level of protection starts to drop after one year.
Cats that require FeLV vaccination should have this repeated every 2-3 years, as long as their risk remains. For both Chlamydophila felis and Bordetella bronchiseptica, the advice is annual revaccination for at risk cats.
These guidelines come from the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) and sound pretty straight forward. But just to confuse the picture, each vaccine manufacturer will have differing advice on their vaccination’s data sheet! So vets may have to choose whether to follow the licensed data sheet or the WSAVA guidelines. Many vaccinations will also be combined in the bottles, so the components cannot be split, meaning there may not be the ability to tailor the vaccination schedule to exactly follow the WSAVA guidelines.
Titre testing
If you’re particularly worried about over-vaccinating, there is one other option you could consider – titre testing. This is testing a blood sample from your cat to look for antibodies to particular viruses to see if vaccination is actually required. Currently, this test is able to check antibody levels against FCV, FHV and FPV, but the only one which is considered of use is the FPV.
This is because for FPV, there is a high correlation between antibody levels and the degree of resistance to infection. A negative test means it is highly likely the antibody levels are low and therefore vaccination is advised. Conversely, if the test is positive and therefore antibody levels are high, vaccination is not required. When looking at the FCV and FHV antibody levels, these have been found to have very little correlation with resistance to infection and so are not of use when deciding whether the cat requires vaccination.
As with many things veterinary, advice can change as new research emerges. If you have any questions, your vet will be able to help, but always be reassured, they will ensure your cat receives the appropriate vaccinations each year so you don’t have to worry which one they are due.
Discussion