Here's some proof for you... I got this off a veterinarian's website:
NO puppy should be at the bark park or other public places until their vaccine series are completely finished! This means 17 weeks of age, which is one week after they've had their last 5-in-1 and their Rabies vaccine. A younger puppy that is "current" on vaccines may still have a chance of being unprotected and susceptible to getting diseases such as Parvo and Distemper. A puppy receives antibodies from its mother through nursing.
Although they protect the infant puppy, these antibodies interfere with vaccines that are given. It is impossible to predict exactly when the level of maternal antibodies in a pa rticular puppy drops to unprotected levels or to levels that don't interfere with our vaccines--each dog is different. This is why we booster these vaccines when dogs are puppies, because we are dealing with maternal antibody interference. So we give puppies vaccines every 2-3 weeks to try and minimize the time frame that a puppy is left unprotected when its maternal antibodies decline and it's time for the next vaccine. The one thing we do know is that by the age of 16 weeks, there is no maternal antibody interference. So that is when we give the last booster. The reason we don't just wait until the puppy is 16 weeks old is that every puppy is different, and although one puppy can have mom's antibodies protecting him or her for 12 weeks before they decline, another puppy can have mom's antibodies decline to unprotected levels at 8 weeks! The "myth" that your puppy needs a certain "number" of vaccines is not correct. It's not the number of vaccines that is important. What's important is that your puppy get vaccinated regularly from the time it's away from mom until he or she is 16 weeks old.
And because we never know when maternal antibodies in any particular puppy are dropping, puppies under 16 weeks old should NOT be at a bark park or anywhere else in public because there may be a chance they will susceptible to disease.
If that's not enough, here's an article about parvo - http://www.petplace.com/Articles/artPrinterFriendly.asp?conID=16188
Also the CKC has a bunch of articles about non-fully vaccinated puppies and the dangers out there ... http://www.continentalkennelclub.com/Articles.aspx?type=health
NO puppy should be at the bark park or other public places until their vaccine series are completely finished! This means 17 weeks of age, which is one week after they've had their last 5-in-1 and their Rabies vaccine. A younger puppy that is "current" on vaccines may still have a chance of being unprotected and susceptible to getting diseases such as Parvo and Distemper. A puppy receives antibodies from its mother through nursing.
Although they protect the infant puppy, these antibodies interfere with vaccines that are given. It is impossible to predict exactly when the level of maternal antibodies in a pa rticular puppy drops to unprotected levels or to levels that don't interfere with our vaccines--each dog is different. This is why we booster these vaccines when dogs are puppies, because we are dealing with maternal antibody interference. So we give puppies vaccines every 2-3 weeks to try and minimize the time frame that a puppy is left unprotected when its maternal antibodies decline and it's time for the next vaccine. The one thing we do know is that by the age of 16 weeks, there is no maternal antibody interference. So that is when we give the last booster. The reason we don't just wait until the puppy is 16 weeks old is that every puppy is different, and although one puppy can have mom's antibodies protecting him or her for 12 weeks before they decline, another puppy can have mom's antibodies decline to unprotected levels at 8 weeks! The "myth" that your puppy needs a certain "number" of vaccines is not correct. It's not the number of vaccines that is important. What's important is that your puppy get vaccinated regularly from the time it's away from mom until he or she is 16 weeks old.
And because we never know when maternal antibodies in any particular puppy are dropping, puppies under 16 weeks old should NOT be at a bark park or anywhere else in public because there may be a chance they will susceptible to disease.
If that's not enough, here's an article about parvo - http://www.petplace.com/Articles/artPrinterFriendly.asp?conID=16188
Also the CKC has a bunch of articles about non-fully vaccinated puppies and the dangers out there ... http://www.continentalkennelclub.com/Articles.aspx?type=health
