Hi,

just curious as i have been reasearching about vaccinations etc. both my kittens are going to be indoor cats as i live in the town centre, so do they really need to be vaccinated???

what are your thoughts on this and do any of you on here have cats which are not vaccinated ?


thanks in advice
maria x

Hi Maria

Vaccination is not necessary, but it is advisable, as we can carry a virus in on our clothing, shoes etc.,

A Vet once said to me, if you dont want to vaccinate every year, then at least try to have the first one done, as in a percentage of cats this one vaccination will protect them for up to 7 years.

Remember, if you have to use a Cattery at some point, they will not accept unvaccinated cats.

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we are planning to keep both our kittens indoors too

they have had the 1st of their kitten jabs and are going back next week for the 2nd set, we had them done without the FELV part as that can only be caught through contact with other cats but the other diseases/viruses can be brought into the house by us.

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I know vaccination is a controversial subject and some years ago there was a strong anti-vaccination view around so I stopped having my cats jabbed. They were fine for about five years and then they all went down with cat flu one after the other. They were very sorry for themselves, had to have antibiotics etc, and I went back to having them jabbed after that. I think I probably agree that cats really only need jabs every second or third year but that it's in vets' financial interests to do it annually, and of course vets make you go through the whole course of injections again if you do miss a year. Actually, my dog missed one year's jabs due to the vet's oversight (when she was having lots of other treatment) and the vet happily gave her the normal, routine jab about eight months after it was overdue when we spotted the mistake, no mention there of needing the whole course again, so that tells you something about their true views!

both of mine have had thier kitten jabs thats it

My oldest cat is 6yrs now and has only been in for teeth removal and to be spayed

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Owner to-
lots of rodents
2 monster dogs
1 slinky cat

My cats are indoors too, but all are vaccinated for FeLV - they could escape accidentally (this did happen once about 8 years ago to one of my girls) and there is always the chance of picking something up if that happened.

I don't agree with yearly boosters though - and I don't personally feel that older cats (e.g. over 10) need any further vaccinations.

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im not 100 percent sure on this but if you want to get pet insurance you have to get there injections....

if im wrong someone please correct me

I'm not really sure about the latter point. As I mentioned above, there was a time when I was very concerned about the effects of jabs and decided against vaccinating my cats, who were older by this stage. After about five years they all caught cat flu one after the other, so I started the jabs again. Having said that, the flu was relatively mild and non-lifethreatening, so I'm not sure what to think really.

I don't believe anything is neccessary further than kitten injections. Mine have never been vaccinated while I've had them, and they spend a lot of time outside.

But please note, you cannot let them in a cattery or groomers if they have not been vaccinated.

Yes you're wrong. Most insurers will say, the pet does not have to be vaccinated, but they will not pay out if your pet needs treatment because of an illness that could have been vaccinated against.

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