She just had her booster jab today, but since then, she hasn’t stopped vomiting bile, crying out, and she’s also had an accident on herself.
She won’t drink anything and is crawling away to hide.
I’ve called the vet and they said it’s the same vaccine as usual. She doesn’t have any swelling (oedema) so they say it’s not an allergic reaction, and she’s never reacted like this before!!
I’m really worried – could it just be stress or something more serious?
I’d really appreciate your thoughts and advice!!!!!
Thanks in advance
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Hi everyone,
Just wanted to share my experience with you all. Last year, my cat went in for his booster shots, including FeLV and rabies. About 30 minutes after we got home, he started showing really severe symptoms. He was completely listless, struggling to breathe, and vomiting... I rushed him straight back to the vet.
The verdict was anaphylactic shock following the vaccinations. He had to have several steroid injections and was hospitalised for the day. It was a very close call, but he was saved just in time. Please don't ignore even the smallest warning sign and contact an emergency vet immediately if you're worried.
Have a good day!
My Persian cat had his rabies jab and since then he’s stopped eating and drinking? I don’t get it. I’m going to ask the vet tomorrow if the vaccine contained aluminium salts? And what should I do after that? To save him.
Hi everyone. I took my 8-year-old cat for his rabies booster yesterday and he’s not been great—very quiet and feeling a bit under the weather. Is this normal?
Hi there,
I know this is an old post but I hope I can help a few people out. I’ll get straight to the point.
I adopted a kitten on the day he turned 3 months old (he’s a rescue kitten). On the day we got him (the Thursday), he had three jabs, which seemed to go fine. Three days later (the Sunday), he stopped eating and drinking—mind you, he’d never been a big drinker—and as the days went by, his condition just kept getting worse. Really worried, we took him to the vet. This first one told us he was in perfect health and that if he wasn't eating, it was just because he was being fussy. I left the appointment feeling a bit relieved but also quite drained. The next day he looked terrible; he wasn't getting up, grooming himself, eating, drinking, or purring anymore. He was completely unresponsive, his eyes looked cloudy, and then he started vomiting. So, we contacted a second vet! This one gave him four injections (anti-sickness, anti-diarrhoea, something for the fever, and antibiotics). That very evening, my kitten—who had been totally listless—turned back into the crazy little guy I knew, running all over the place. If we’d been 3 or 4 hours later, he would’ve lost his life.
My point is, a kitten is too young at 2, 3, or 4 months old to have so many jabs at once; it just wrecks their system, but it’s a time-saver for the vet. The first vet missed everything and did nothing, but the second one was lovely and took action. Even if we don’t know exactly what’s going on inside him, we know it was the vaccines! The little mite is coming back to life, running and playing everywhere, though we’re still having to syringe-feed him for now.
If I've understood correctly, things took another turn for the worse yesterday... honestly, I'd be heading straight to the vet!
As for the booster jabs... I know, I've heard the talk too! Everyone seems to have a different opinion on it...
When I took my cats for their annual boosters... the vet, who’d always recommended the rabies jab up until now, actually told me this time it might not be necessary because that vaccine contains aluminium salts, and there aren’t any alternatives without them yet!!! Mind you, he did switch the brand for the other vaccines to one that's now aluminium-free.
It really makes you wonder! Is it the vaccines themselves that are the problem... or is their immunity still strong enough even if we don't do systematic boosters every single year?
I’d put money on it being a bad reaction to the FeLV jab.
Anyway, same advice as @Mariegame, but I wouldn't wait 48 hours. If there's no improvement by today (Tuesday), I'd head back to the vet, whether it's the same one or a different one.
On the other hand, regarding vaccinations, are there any other articles that discuss or even advise against getting them every year? I’m interested in the subject, but I’ve got my doubts about whether skipping certain boosters (like cat flu or enteritis, for instance) is actually a good idea. Thanks in advance! :)
Keep a close eye on your cat. If their condition doesn't improve within 48 hours, I'd suggest taking them to a different vet for a second opinion, making sure to explain that this started right after a vaccination.
I’m quite surprised by what you’ve described and would urge you to stay very alert regarding their health over the next few days.
She’s been sick twice more in the last seven hours, bringing up a bit of bile with some blood, but the vet told me it was just due to internal irritation and I’ve given her some medication to settle her stomach.
She seems completely wiped out from the exhaustion and the jabs (Versifel CVR and FeLV).
It’s the first time she’s ever had a reaction like this!
Since she’s an indoor cat, I think we’ll skip the boosters next time; there’s no point doing them if she isn’t at risk!
An extract from a text on vaccinations by vet Dr Charles Danten
"Many vets and an even greater number of clients have come to question the medical basis for routine annual vaccinations for their pets, and with good reason! This practice is not justifiable, so why do we keep debating it and ignoring the issue? We don't have five or six different vaccines jabbed into us every single year of our lives, so why should it be any different for our animals? Humans are given several vaccinations during childhood which provide lifelong protection for a significant proportion of those vaccinated. Twenty years ago, vaccines were only given to puppies and kittens. The only exception was rabies, for which a booster was recommended every two to three years—more for public health reasons than to protect the animal’s own health. Why, then, do we persist in giving annual booster injections when this practice is not medically justified?"
I completely agree with @Lulu75: there’s definitely over-vaccination going on, which mostly just lines the pockets of the big labs and the vets. Don't get me wrong! I'm not saying for a second that we shouldn't vaccinate our pets properly: vaccines are essential for puppies and throughout a dog's life. It's the frequency and those annual boosters that are being questioned. Research has shown that we could easily wait 2 or 3 years between boosters. When it comes to serology and the antibodies dogs develop, it actually goes even further than that (protection for 5 to 7 years). It's worth noting that in Germany or Switzerland, and even with some vets, the booster isn't given every single year, yet the vaccine used is exactly the same as the one used here in the UK. Of course, every case needs to be looked at individually, depending on how much contact the dog has with other dogs, their environment, and so on.
In this specific case, since the dog has had its jab, I wouldn't hesitate for a second to go back to the vet.
