Last Saturday, we took Cody, our little American Eskimo to the vet for his annual vaccinations. He got his DHLLPP Booster, a 2 year rabies shot and a heartworm test. The next day, he started holding up the paw they'd drawn blood from for the heartworm test. As the day progressed, he began walking like he was sore all over and even cried out in pain several times when we'd pet him. After a while, he laid down on the floor and refused to even try to get up. It was heart wrenching.
I dug out the receipt from the animal clinic to double check what vaccinations he'd had. I had pets come home and be sleepy after getting their vaccinations, but nothing like this. When I looked at the receipt, there was a warning printed on it that I hadn't noticed before: "Your pet may experience some lethargy and soreness from the vaccinations. This is normal with very young animals. If this persists longer than 24 hours, please call our office."
I gave him some baby aspirin and that seemed to help. He at least got up and moved around a little after that.
He was much better the next day, although he still favored that paw and you could tell walking up and down stairs was still painful.
Have you ever had your cat or dog have a reaction like this to their vaccinations? Is baby aspirin the best idea when they are in pain or are there other over the counter medications you suggest?
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Comments: 5
After having their shots one year, one of ours started limping--and she didn't have any shots in her legs. We had X-rays and found nothing. After a month, she stopped limping.
The next year, she limped again...for 3 months, had a temperature and had all kinds of expensive blood tests to see what was wrong. FInally, one of the vets told us that they had had six other cats experience problems after their shots...and that they switched providers. I'm still mad at myself for not asking them to pay for all the tests.