The most common misconception about indoor pets and vaccines
Vaccines can be very confusing, so it’s no surprise that so many myths have popped up around them. One myth that veterinarians hear from owners again and again seems so logical on the surface that it’s easy to see why so many people believe it: that indoor pets don’t need vaccines because they aren’t exposed to infectious diseases.
Let’s dig a little deeper and bust this misleading myth.
For dogs, the answer is easy—no dog spends 100% of their time indoors. Even the most pampered of pooches will go to the bathroom outside occasionally. This short time outside brings them into the same habitat as urban wildlife (like squirrels and raccoons), pests (including mice and rats) and roaming or stray pets, exposing them to diseases like rabies, distemper, parvovirus and leptospirosis.
But what about cats who never leave the house?
The three diseases covered by the feline distemper vaccine (feline rhinotracheitis virus, feline calicivirus and feline panleukopenia virus) can all be brought into your home on inanimate objects, like your clothes and shoes. So if you happen to walk by a colony of stray cats on your way home from work, you can unknowingly carry these diseases to your indoor cat on the soles of your shoes.
Rabies virus, on the other hand, does need direct contact to transfer—usually a bite—between an infected animal and your pet. Indoor cats can be exposed to rabies if they sneak outside or if bats, which carry rabies and make attractive hunting targets, sneak inside. Even though these may not be daily occurrences, rabies is always fatal in both humans and pets, so it’s just not worth the risk to leave your pet unvaccinated.
Because these diseases simply can’t be avoided, certain vaccines are labeled as “core vaccines,” meaning that every pet should get them regardless of their lifestyle. Core vaccines in dogs and cats are:
Easily find out if your pet is up to date on their vaccines by logging in to your myVCA account. If they’re due for a booster, quickly book an appointment through the app, too!
