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Could be, but in my experience, talking to dog show people, immune disorders in dogs don't come up in conversation as a common disease, let alone causes... so if it is a side effect of shots, which those dogs all get, I think your daughters(?) pup is a rare case... And I have never heard of a cancer at the site of the shot in cats. It is interesting, and will be interesting to see what happens as more is learned. Like I said, here in Washington state, we are already on a three-year schedule for rabies after the first year.

Incidentally, there has not been one case of rabies in Washington in anything other than bats in 20 years (and only a few cases in bats). I had begun to wonder if eventually this vaccine may begin to be phased out, so I was surprised to see on a google search that rabies is still found commonly elsewhere in the country. The other diseases, parvo in puppies and feline leukemia in particular, are quite common in unvaccinated animals here. And parvo always will be I would imagine... it is a naturally found disease that is everywhere...

No, it's unlikely to ever be phased out, as you found. Here in New York, there's a huge reservoir for the disease in the wildlife population - bats, raccoons, skunks, foxes, et cetera. There are still thousands and thousands of known cases of rabies per year among wild animals (85% of them are raccoons), and that's just in this state, and just the ones the Department of Health knows about.

I'm glad you guys don't have to deal with this out there - one case of bat rabies in twenty years is nothing. We've had two human fatalities from contact with rabid bats in the last ten - count your blessings....

Could be, but in my experience, talking to dog show people, immune disorders in dogs don't come up in conversation as a common disease, let alone causes...

Perhaps you were in conversation with some who are in denial about the increased frequency of auto-immune disorders in dogs (and cats, although that is not my field of expertise). Auto-immune diseases are growing by leaps and bounds in all breeds of pure breds that I am familiar with ... thyroid deficiencies, in many breeds that are "pure" AND in cross breeds are increasing ... lupus and many cancers are becoming common as well as some diseases that I could not spell without checking my data bases.

Titer testing is an option to giving annual shots -- but is more expensive than the shots themselves. I do NOT give shots annually (perhaps I should say routinely to adults) and some testing shows very high levels of immunity in some cases tested up to four years since the last shot for "whatever" disease. Rabies shots are mandatory in CA every three years and since I have to have a yearly inspection of my kennel -- having proof of this inoculation is mandatory and must cover the entire licensing period every year. I lose out on time every two years because of our Jan 1st to Dec 31st "year". It's tough to get shots updated on the exact dates.

The drastic changes in feeding of dogs and cats in the last 15 years with a drastic increase in very high protein has advantages in making "super dogs" which mature very early and are "prime" for the ring as pups and continue into early adulthood. This difference in protein also burns out coats, and possibly internal organs in MANY dogs at a very early age. Pancreatitis and all the other "itis'" are rampant among dogs.

My own dogs which used to have normal lifespans of near 17, with commoness ... now develop arthritis and other diseases of all kinds in the 10 to 14 year range. It is a near impossibility to find a good, balanced level protein food (21-23% max) today, and I don't use one anymore either. I am working on obtaining the food we used for more than 20 years, but it could be a b***h (pun intended) getting it out here in CA, again.

Most vets that I know and who are friends of mine agree with both theories (one of over innoculation and one of "hot" food) as being life shortening for our pets.