In his letter to the editor (Aug. 15), Maine Veterinary Medical Association’s President Bill Bryant expressed concern about veterinarians going “off label” to adopt the 3-year core vaccination frequencies recommended in 2003 by the American Animal Hospital Association and endorsed by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. In 2000, the American Association of Feline Practitioners recommended a similar 3-year protocol for cats.

Pet owners should be aware, as veterinarians are, that the government only requires manufacturers to perform duration of immunity studies on rabies vaccines for licensure. Distemper, parvovirus, panleukopenia, calicivirus, rhinotracheitis and other vaccines are not required to have duration of immunity studies to be licensed. According to Colorado State’s College of Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital, “Yearly booster vaccine recommendations for vaccines other than rabies virus have been determined arbitrarily by manufacturers.”

Bryant believes that following arbitrary manufacturers’ labels is a more “cautious” approach to veterinary care than adhering to the protocols of national veterinary medical associations and all 27 veterinary colleges.

Colorado State adopted the reduced vaccination protocols “based on the lack of scientific evidence to support the current practice of annual vaccination and increasing documentation showing that overvaccinating has been associated with harmful side effects.”

Maine citizens are entitled to full disclosure about pet vaccines. Failure to support state Sen. Chris Hall’s vaccine disclosure legislation, coupled with failure to abandon unnecessary annual vaccinations in favor of nationally recommended triennial schedules, will undermine trust in the Maine Veterinary Medical Association and its members. They should reconsider their position.

Kris L. Christine, Alna

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