Vaccines in Nunavut.

Dr. Marie replied:

Well this is an interesting question. I know that I have shipped vaccine to Nunavut for clients of mine who had moved there. But I can see that other vets would not be willing to do that if you are not an established client. That is good news that you are able to get vaccines on your own.

There are probably legal issues with me giving you advice on what to give to your pet without having a client-patient relationship with you, but I can give you some generalizations that really should help.

I would think that the main concerns in Nunavit would be for parvovirus, possibly distemper and also rabies. I dont' think that leptospirosis and lyme disease would be common in a northern climate.

So, I would generally start vaccinations between 6 and 8 weeks of age and the vaccine I would use would be one that has distemper and parvo. (We generally use a combo called DA2PPV (distemper, adenovirus, parvo virus and parainfluenza)). Then, I would be giving this vaccine again 3-4 weeks later and a third time 3-4 weeks after that. Each needle is given as a subcutaneous injection. I usually use a 3cc syringe and a 25g needle, but a 22g is ok as well. The dose for each vaccine will be 1cc which should be the whole bottle.

With that final vaccine I would also give a rabies vaccination. I would be surprised if you can buy rabies vaccine out of Winnipeg as most provinces have a legal requirement for a licensed vet to administer a rabies vaccine. But, if you can get the DA2PPV vaccine that's a start.

(Added: I just reread your question and saw that you have access to rabies vaccines, so ignore that last part!)

Here is another place that may be able to help you. This is the licensing body for veterinarians in Nunavut:

Government of Nunavut Department of Health and Social Services

Nunavut Registrar Professional Licensing
P.O. Box 390
Kugluktuk, NU X0B 0E0
(867) 982-7672

Let me know if you have more questions!

If it helps, here is some more information on my recommended vaccine schedule for dogs.

Dr. Marie

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