If you are going to live with a dog soon, you should know that vaccines are one of the veterinary actions that you should implement as a routine in the life of your pet. It does not matter if it is a puppy or an adult, or if it coexists with you at home or abroad; vaccines will help you not get many diseases.

Although we are all quite used to taking our animals to the vet, there is a lot of ignorance with vaccinating dogs. For this reason, in this article we will help you differentiate between those recommended vaccinations and those that are mandatory for your furry companion.

Why should we vaccinate dogs?

Our dogs are always exposed to diseases in their day to day. In most cases, these diseases can be treated and curable with minimal veterinary intervention. But there are pathologies that can be fatal and there is no medicine to eliminate them, only supportive treatment. For this reason, veterinary medicine has directed its efforts towards prevention: hence the importance of the obligation and recommendation of vaccines.

The administration of vaccines for dogs in Spain not only serves to prevent, but also eradicates infectious diseases (as has been the case of rabies for years), helps to maintain public health (since many of these diseases can be zoonoses, that is, they can be transferred to humans), and favors the decrease in the overuse of antibiotics.

What vaccines for dogs are mandatory in Spain?

The vaccines called compulsory, are those that are considered vital in the life of a dog, although they may vary according to the country, or even according to the Autonomous Community within Spain. These are usually applied when the dog is still a puppy, usually after the sixth week.

The mandatory vaccines for dogs in Spain are:

• Parvovirus: This is a vaccine that helps prevent Canine Parvovirosis, a disease that damages the intestines, causing bloody diarrhea. This is usually one of the first vaccines to be injected, as puppies are prone to contracting this virus if it is not prevented.
• Distemper: Distemper is a disease that can also affect cats. It is a highly harmful condition since it affects the puppy’s digestive, respiratory and nervous systems, which can lead to death. It is a very contagious disease, but luckily, it can be avoided by administering their respective vaccines. As with Parvovirus, the puppy is also usually injected during its first weeks of life.
• Rabies: many years ago, the rabies virus was highly established throughout the world, and although it is considered fulminated in Spain, it is important to prevent it, since it can also be passed on to humans. The rabies virus is transmitted through saliva, in the case of dogs the most common is that it enters the dog’s blood system through a bite. Today it is a vaccine that can also be administered while the dog is a puppy, although it is warned that its effectiveness begins after a couple of weeks, so caution is necessary.

Other vaccines for dogs

There are other optional vaccines that you may be interested in learning about. In this case, it would be interesting for your dog’s veterinarian to advise you according to the environment in which the dog lives or its breed, therefore, we recommend that you request an appointment to determine what other vaccines might be recommended in the case of your pet.

Vaccines of an optional nature in Spain, are normally supplied on an annual basis, and there is the option of creating “multipurpose”, where various vaccines for dogs are mixed in one, and thus, prevent different diseases, such as: hepatitis canine, leishmania, leptospirosis, lyme, kennel cough or coronavirus, among others.