Vaccination

A few core vaccines protect every dog against diseases that are widespread, severe and, in the case of rabies, fatal and able to pass to people. They are the simplest, surest protection you can give. Here is how it is usually done; your vet sets the exact plan for yours.

What's involved

The core combined vaccine covers distemper, adenovirus (the cause of infectious hepatitis), and parvovirus, the last especially deadly to puppies. Leptospirosis, a bacterial disease that also passes to people, is now recommended for most dogs and often given in the same routine; your vet judges whether your dog needs it. And rabies. Some dogs also need non-core vaccines, such as kennel cough for dogs that board or socialise, depending on how your dog lives.

The schedule

Puppies get the core combined vaccine as a series, at least three doses between six and sixteen weeks, two to four weeks apart, with the last dose at sixteen weeks or later, because protection borrowed from the mother can block an earlier shot. A booster follows within a year, then the core vaccines repeat every three years. Leptospirosis is boosted yearly. Rabies is given from around twelve weeks, boosted a year later, then on the interval your vet and local rules set.

In Egypt

Rabies is endemic here and is carried mostly by dogs, with hundreds of thousands of animal bites and dozens of human deaths reported a year. That makes the dog rabies vaccine the single most important shot for your dog and for public health, and the one most often required for travel or export, worth checking early if you plan to move your dog.

Choosing a vaccine

Vaccines are given by your vet, who chooses the right combination for how your dog lives and where you are. Ask what is stocked locally. The rule worth knowing: the puppy series must run to at least sixteen weeks, a single early shot is not reliable protection.

When to see your vet

For the whole vaccination plan, which is a vet visit by nature. Any bite or rabies exposure is an emergency for the dog and the household, get help at once. A sick or pregnant dog needs your vet's judgment before vaccinating.

This is a starting point, not a prescription. Every dog is different, and your veterinarian chooses the right products and timing for yours. We are always glad to point you the right way.