What is in the vaccines?
Dogs are normally vaccinated against several different types of diseases. The vaccine the veterinarian administers to your dog, particularly puppy, may help protect against different combinations of the following diseases. However, if your dog or puppy is vaccinated according to your veterinarians instructions they should be immune to the following diseases, except in some very rare circumstances. The first disease, distemper, is a virus that is related to the measles virus. It is a severe, highly contagious virus that affects various body systems in dogs and other carnivores throughout the world. Dogs are also vaccinated against two other types of viruses known as canine adenovirus type 1 (CAV-1) and canine adenovirus type 2 (CAV-2). Canine adenovirus type 1 causes canine hepatitis that can damage the liver, kidney, eyes, and blood vessels.
Vaccines can be made from dead organisms (like the tetanus vaccine), a highly weakened organism (like the measles vaccine), or synthetic copies of critical parts of an organism (like the hepatitis B vaccine). Most vaccines have two main components – the part (or parts) of the organism that is expected to trigger a specific immune response against that organism and an “adjuvant,” which is a general stimulator of the immune system. Vaccines can be given by mouth, as a shot, or even as a patch on the skin. You will be given complete information about each vaccine in the volunteer briefing and on the consent form, and you can directly ask the investigator any other questions that you have.
