How good is the second vaccination?

[Alana]

I am getting my puppy when it is 9 weeks old. It will have had the second vaccination by then but not the third. I have two cats who are indoor/outdoor cats and I am worried about them infecting my puppy because they go out and play during the day. Will my puppy be covered between the second and third vaccination?

[denali]

I am not 100% sure, so wait and see what everyone else says. But You shouldn't have a problem.
I believe they only give three vaccinations because they don't know when the immunity that they were born with wears off.
So you should definitely be ok, because if he doesn't have the immunity form the vaccine, it means he still has his mothers immunity.

I brought my puppy home to a mostly outside cat and he was fine

[Karlin]

They will probably be covered, but not necessarily–that is why the 3rd vaccination has to be given, and even then, they would not be assured of having basic immunity until about 10 to 14 days after the last vaccination in the series. There would be some risk that cats could bring in distemper or parvo, but the risk is pretty miniscule. if you are worried, I would ring your vet and just have a chat.

Puppies never have the full immune strength of adult dogs, really, during their 1st year of life. The one year booster is quite important, but after that, many people advocate going onto a 3 year core vaccine scheme or waiting even longer. There is very good evidence that dogs not only do not need to be vaccinated every year (or cats), but that this actually raises the risk of certain kinds of illness (cancers forming around the site of vaccines for cats, for example).

[JessieAndMe]

Only going by what our vet stressed to us, but even when taking our little guy in for his last puppy booster recently,
she still advised us to carry him in and not to put him down in the waiting room at any time, as he still wasn't fully covered
until 10 days after his final booster. Only now we're able to let him socialise with other dogs and go for walks.
She did add that he COULD mix with other dogs beforehand, as long as they had been fully vaccinated and free of illness and the
likes. Like others, I would give your vet a dingle, just for your own peace of mind.

[Alana]

Thank you for the replies. My cats are fully vaccinated (they are 2 years old) and are up to date with the vaccinations, so their shouldn't be a problem from biting or saliva, I think parvo is spread through excrement, and cats usually stay away from that. I will definitely talk to the vet.

[Reptigirl]

Just because your cats are vaccinated doesn't mean they can't bring viruses in. On there fur. We live in an area where parvo & distemper are a problem. It's common for the vets to warm owners they could carry it on there shoes or clothes from being somewhere an affected animal has just been. It is always better to be safe then sorry. I know people who have spent over $1,000 trying to save a parvo puppy only to have it not make it. It's just my opinion, your going to have your doggy for 7-12 years.... waiting the few weeks to get the 1st 3 vaccinations really could make a lifetime of difference.