All About Kittens!
At Kindler Animal Hospital, we believe in promoting a lifestyle of wellness for our pets, starting at a young age. For this article, we will focus on what we recommend for optimal kitten preventive care.
FVRCP: The backbone of the kitten vaccine series
It is important for kittens receive to receive their FVRCP boosters every 3-4 weeks, until they are about 16 weeks old. We usually begin the series of boosters when they are around 8 weeks old. This vaccine is considered a core vaccine, meaning it is vitally important for all kittens regardless of lifestyle. This vaccine that protects against the upper respiratory infections feline herpes virus and calicivirus, as well as feline distemper. Feline distemper is the cat version of parvovirus.
FeLV (Feline Leukemia)
Another infection that we vaccinate for is called FeLV. We generally start the Purevax FeLV vaccine when kittens are approximately 12 weeks old. This requires a final booster in 3-4 weeks. This is a virus that gets transmitted through direct contact with bodily fluid of infected cats. We strongly recommend it for cats that will go outdoors for any length of time. It is a non-core vaccine, however, so if you are certain your kitten will not be going outside, you may opt out of this vaccine.
Rabies: The most important vaccine of them all
Like FVRCP, this is a core vaccine. We usually administer the Purevax rabies vaccine at their last visit. This vaccine is vitally important because there is no treatment for this deadly viral infection. Like leptospirosis, this is also a zoonotic infection that can affect people as well.
Example of a complete kitten series:
8 weeks: FVRCP
12 weeks: FVRCP, (optional Purevax FeLV)
16 weeks: FVRCP, Purevax Rabies, (optional Purevax FeLV)
Why Purevax?
At Kindler Animal Hospital, we do not recommend the use of adjuvanted killed rabies or FeLV vaccines in cats. Adjuvants have been implicated in a very rare but serious tumor called Vaccine Associated Fibrosarcoma. Purevax brand Rabies and FeLV vaccines do not contain any adjuvants, which make them the safest type of vaccines available for cats. As a result, we only recommend the Purevax brand in our feline patients.
Good preventive care means more than just vaccines
We strongly recommend testing kittens for FeLV (Feline leukemia) and FIV (Feline AIDS). These infections are contagious, so it is recommended to have a new kitten tested before bringing them into a home with other cats. These infections can also affect a cat’s ability to fight off other diseases, so it is still in your kitten’s best interest to know their status even if they will be the only cat in the household.
Intestinal parasites such as roundworms are a concern at this age, so we strongly recommend following guidelines put forth by the Companion Animal Parasite Council (CAPC) to provide optimal protection. – See more here.