I've worked with dogs that have contracted Lepto and it's a horrible disease, I also live in a rural area with lots of canals and areas of standing water so will always vaccinate my dogs against lepto.

 

Thank you for your reply. I'm guessing your dog has not shown any reactions to it?

 

One of mine has had a skin lump that was present for about 7 days and was a little off colour for 24hrs following the vaccination but otherwise no real reaction.

 

I give Lepto2 as my lurcher walks over fields where rats are seen and occasionally they come in the garden from the fields at the back. He’s never had any side effects.

I personally wouldn’t give Lepto4 as there have been some worrying side effects.

A friend’s pup has had 4 seizures starting a week after the 4 and is about to undergo investigations and tests.

 

Personally I think the L4 is perfectly safe. My vet would not use it if there was credible evidence there was a danger to dogs. There isn't, mostly hearsay. Hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dogs have been vaccinated with L4. It will have saved thousands of dogs lives. People just don't advertise the fact their dog was vaccinated and had no reactions and we never know which dogs lives were saved by it. I would sayit is irresponsible not to vaccinate a dog and walk it in areas where thay are placed at risk of contracting Leptospirosis.

 

Lepto is definitely a horrible disease and if there is a risk then vaccine should definitely be strongly considered. There was/is a lot of negative reports about the L4 vaccine but the reported adverse reaction rates were the same as for any other vaccine from the figures I saw a couple of years ago and personally (for what it's worth being an anecdote) I never had any concerns after administering the vaccine apart from a day or two of being off colour which is to be expected in some individuals (just like us after vaccination, after all we are stimulating the immune system to respond to a perceived infection). As to whether it is more appropriate to give over L2, it depends where you are

 

I would always vaccinate against lepto. My farm dogs that never went off the farm were done just for letpto every year. As for the lepto 4, I have only heard about it on here but would find it inconvenient that they have to have a third injection and as far as I know my vet does not use it. I think there must have been a lot of reactions or why would so many vets steer clear of it.

 

I would always vaccinate against lepto. My farm dogs that never went off the farm were done just for letpto every year. As for the lepto 4, I have only heard about it on here but would find it inconvenient that they have to have a third injection and as far as I know my vet does not use it. I think there must have been a lot of reactions or why would so many vets steer clear of it.

My vet uses L2. Her reasoning to me (some time ago) was that she'd rather wait when anything new comes out to see how it goes unless there is a compelling reason to use it. I'd guess then that I'm in an area where L2 is considered adequate as she'd soon have a lousy reputation if it wasn't.

 

My dog had L4 - was fine, had a small lump for a couple of days but that's it. TBH the vet nurse messed up giving it to her, she injected her and before it was done the syringe popped off the needle, so the vet nurse had to get another and do it again.

People aren't going to complain on forums and fb groups about their dog being absolutely fine after L4 - only those who've sadly had bad experiences.

The lepto vaccines don't cover all strains of lepto, L4 covers two more than L2. If you are in a high risk area (your vet would know) then I'd definitely have it done.

 

I suggest you do your research thoroughly. I personally don't vaccinate my dogs for Lepto, having had two in recent years with adverse reactions.

You might find this interesting:

Re: Lepto

Is leptospirosis endemic in your area? It isn't in the North of England generally, but you would need to ask your vet to see if they can advise.

Can your vet confirm that the serovars in the vaccine will cover for strains of the bacteria in your area? There are over 100 strains of leptospirosis and the serovars are not always developed in this country. The vaccine only contains something like five.

I don't like lepto as it's the one that is linked to the most adverse reactions. But talk it through with your vet, it's definitely only something you can decide on behalf of your dogs. If you google 'World Small Animal Veterinary Association' and read their guidelines for canine/feline vaccination, that will explain a lot more.

 

Talk through your concerns with your own vet who will be aware of the risks in your area and can help you decide.

My girl had a severe reaction to her first Lepto 4 jab (she'd been fine with the Lepto 2 and all other vaccinations) to the point where I was seriously considering not letting her have the followup jab. I finally decided to let her have it after discussion with my vet and she had no adverse reaction to the second injection and has been fine with her subsequent 2 annual boosters. My vets is part of a large practice with 3 surgeries and my dog continues to be the only one in any of their surgeries who has ever experienced any kind of adverse reaction.

There is always going to be a risk with any treatment, especially when giving it for the first time. But there is also a risk of non-vaccinated dogs contracting the diseases the vaccinations protect against. Only you can decide which risk is best to take for your dog and your vet is the best person to help you make that decision.