Category Archive

I used to be a responsible dog owner. Every May the postcard from the vet would arrive reminding us it was time for annual vaccines. Off we would trot as soon as we got the card. We wouldn’t want the dog to catch any dangerous diseases. What exactly are annual vaccines anyway? With the exception of rabies (which I am NOT addressing here), can you name what is in the vaccine cocktail that your pet gets every year? Probably not.

Such was the case in May of 2006 when the postcard arrived reminding us it was time for Renga’s vaccines. Off we went. He got his rabies shot and his “annual” vaccines. The next day we noticed that the hair between his shoulders where the vet inserted the needle had turned purple. Not, the skin, the hair itself was purple. At first I thought the vet had jiggled the needle and caused a bruise. But as I said, the skin was normal. Anyway, it was odd and life went on.

At the end of July the groomer found a marble sized lump on the back of Renga’s leg. Fearing the worst, but hoping for the best, we were off to the vet again. A biopsy revealed the worst. Lymphoma. We were devastated. When my eyes were dry enough, I spent every waking moment researching canine lymphoma. Somehow I’d hoped that I’d find a cure. The more I read and researched, the more the cure eluded me. However, a cause started to appear. Repeatedly in the literature I found things like, “pets are over vaccinated,” “over vaccination is killing our pets,” “over vaccinating is leading to cancers.” There it was: vaccines and cancers. I couldn’t help but think back to that purple vaccine day in May. Did one vaccine cause cancer, or was it the 10 years worth of vaccines that had finally worn out his immune system? On October 3rd, 2006, four and a half months after the vaccines, and 2 months after the initial lump was found, Renga died. The cancer won, but for me, the battle had just begun. I would never again give unnecessary vaccines to my pets.

Fast forward to today. I cannot prove that the vaccines caused Renga’s cancer. What I do know from my year and half of research on the topic is that they are now believed by many vets to be a leading cause of cancers and other diseases in pets. Two months ago I got yet another postcard reminding me it was time for vaccines for Agner (Renga spelled backwards!). At 16 months old, Agner had only been vaccinated twice. Puppies are normally given 3 sets of vaccines before 4 months old. He’d had the first set (parvo and distemper) before I got him. Not wanting any more vaccines than necessary for my dog, I refused to have three sets. I waited until he was around 14 weeks old and had the final set (parvo, distemper, adenovirus, parainfluenza).

At one year dogs begin the cycle of “annual” vaccines. During my research I learned of a little word that just might be a lifesaver. A titer. A blood titer is when blood is drawn and tested to see if the animal has immunity to particular diseases. There is NO NEED for annual vaccines if your dog is already immune to the disease! I told my vet no vaccines. I wanted a titer done. Low and behold, the numbers astounded me. According to the lab, in order for a dog to be considered immune to distemper, he needed 640 or above. Agner’s result was 1280. For parvo he needed to be above 160. He was 640! Four times the amount necessary. In other words, he is completely protected from these diseases based on his vaccines as a puppy. There is absolutely NO NEED for him to be given an annual vaccine. And yet, the upsetting part, is that vets WANT to continue to vaccinate rather than titer! Had I still been a “responsible” pet owner, I would have just gone in and had my vaccines done and possibly killed another dog. I am now an informed pet owner.

I strongly suggest that you ask your vet for a titer rather than a vaccine. The company here in Japan (there might be others) is Marupi Life Tech in Osaka. It is actually in katakana. Ask your vet. Amazingly, they know the company but probably will not offer you a titer unless you ask. The vet will draw blood and send it to Marupi. About two weeks later you will have your results. Our vet charged 4,200 yen for this. Probably, about the same as annual vaccines, but certainly much cheaper than a cremation.

On Friday Feb. 1st, the Los Angeles City Council voted to approve mandatory spaying and neutering of cats and dogs under the age of 4 months. The goal of the initiative is to empty all shelters of unwanted pets. A worthwhile goal, surely, but one that has opinions on both sides. Questions abound, one of them being, how will this be enforced? Will dog owners be stopped out on their daily stroll and asked to show proof of desexing? What about cat owners? Bob Barker, who many may remember as the host of The Price is Right, supports the initiative. He always ended his game show reminding people to spay and neuter their pets. You can read more about the law in this Los Angeles Times article.

One has to wonder if the Japanese authorities are aware of this new law. Is it one they’d be willing to copy? How would Japanese pet owners react to such a law? This is still the land where vets tell pet owners not to neuter dogs until after one year or to spay females until after their first heat. It would be interesting to hear their justification for the wait now that L.A. is mandating it at 4 months. We’ll have to wait and see if this is something Japan chooses to adopt or not….

Have you heard of Animal Wellness magazine? Their delivered subscription is quite expensive for overseas, around US$75 or so. However, their digital subscription is only US$14.95 for 6 issues (published bimonthly). You get the same magazine in digital format. Apparently, it is quite a good magazine if you are interested in holistic approaches, home prepared food, and what not.

Many cities and towns in Japan have a policy of subsidizing the costs of having cats and dogs spayed or neutered. The city often sets aside a certain amount of money for this sort of subsidization per year and then when the money runs out, they stop providing the subsidies. If your pet needs this kind of operation, be sure to contact your city government to find out if it offers something like this. Also, you might want to do it earlier in the fiscal year (in the months following April) rather than later so that you have a chance of benefiting from the subsidy.

Here is an example of one such program in Adachi-ku, Tokyo. (It is the latest post on the page, so it is currently right at the bottom. If you can’t find it, use the “search” function in your browser to find occurrences of “Adachi-ku”.)

I know that Tsukuba, Ibaraki also offers this kind of subsidy, but I recently read that the funding is running out for this year, so if you want to take advantage of this program, contact the City Hall soon!

Here is a recommendation for a veterinarian in Osaka.

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Fabre Doubutsu Iryou Center
Osaka-fu, Kadoma-shi, Minami Noguchi-machi 512-3
Tel: 072-887-2525

ファーブル動物医療センター
大阪府門真市南野口町512-3

Comment from Aw/F member:

It’s difficult to access without a car, but not impossible, depending on what kind of animal you’re bringing! The best thing is that they are open on weekends and holidays. All the doctors I met were very friendly, wonderful with the animals, and tried their best to communicate with me with my limited medical Japanese. One of the doctors works at ARK, so I think that’s a decent recommendation too.

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Any others to recommend in Osaka or other areas of Japan? Please list them in the comments or post to our mailing list.

Here is a recommendation for a veterinarian in Nagoya.

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Morimura Animal Hospital
Aichi-ken, Nagoya-shi, Kita-ku, Kaneshiro 2-2-2
Tel: 052-982-2790

森村動物病院 = morimura doubutsu byouin
愛知県名古屋市北区金城2-2-2

Comment from Aw/F member:
He is really good at explaining things in English.
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Any others to recommend in Nagoya or other areas of Japan? Please list them in the comments or post to our mailing list.

Here is an article I found about how attitudes about pets have changed in Japan over the last few years resulting in a lot more pet-related spending.

Though figures are scarce, a study published last year showed that longevity for cats in Japan almost doubled between 1991 and 2003, from 5.1 years to 9.9 years. Dog longevity surged from 8.6 years to 11.9 years.

Read the full article: Aging pampered pets in Japan get acupuncture

When I was out shopping this weekend, I noticed that poinsettia season has begun in stores in Japan. (Sales of Christmas-related things seem to start earlier and earlier every year. Hallowe’en hasn’t even happened yet!) That reminded me of a topic that was covered on the Angels with Fur mailing list in December 2003: Are poinsettias poisonous to cats?

While some of the members thought that they were, the consensus was that they are not necessarily toxic, but they can be “highly irritating to the gastrointestinal tract” (see: My Cat Ate a Poinsettia, Now What?). The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals supports this position, as you can see in the Toxicology Brief they published in the November 2000 issue of Veterinary Technician (p.630) entitled Tis the Season to Be Informed: Toxic Potential of Holiday Plants (pdf). In the brief, the ASPCA suggests that your cat may exhibit “gastrointestinal (GI) irritation, including hypersalivation, vomiting, and diarrhea” after ingesting a poinsettia, but that you may be able to reduce the seriousness of the symptoms by giving the cat water or milk.

If your cat eats poinsettia leaves, keep a close eye on her and perhaps try to feed her some milk or water. If you are worried about her condition, take her to your vet to be sure that she is okay.

(Angels with Fur is not associated with any veterinarians, so the advice presented in this post should not be taken as official medical advice for your pet. Please consult your veterinarian if you have any questions regarding the content of this site.)