All Aboard the Puppy Vaccine Express

**Disclaimer: I am by no means an expert in pet medicine or vaccinations; therefore, please remember that this post is for storytelling purposes only and to share with you my experience as a first time pawrent. If you need proper guidance on how to keep your furry one safe and what procedure to follow with their vaccinations, please make sure to do this under the care and guidance of a licensed Vet MD. **

Now, shortly, and I mean very shortly after adopting Athena, I could feel my pawrent instincts kicking in. As aforementioned in my previous post, I had vowed that I would do anything to keep my fur baby safe and sound and I was determined wholeheartedly to keep that vow. Only days after bringing her home, I knew that keeping her safe meant paying attention to every aspect of her life. This meant that I had to make sure she was not only physically nurtured and cared for but also that she would be medically looked after.

Quick sidenote here: I have been an avid pet show enthusiast for YEARS with my favorite channels to turn to being TLC and Animal Planet. I've watched basically every episode from: Dr. Jeff: Rocky Mountain Vet, Dr. Dee: Alaskan Vet, Dogs 101, and The Vet Life. You get the idea! LOL. Thank God for this because, even just as a pet show enthusiast, I have learned many important parts of pet healthcare and illness prevention that helped guide my first steps in the right direction.

Thinking of it here as I write this for you, I see can see the minimal information I have gained from these shows has been both a blessing and a curse...let me explain. I may not know all of the diseases that our furry little ones can encounter; however, thanks to this unique past-time of mine I managed to memorize one particular illness that simply terrified me to my core... Parvovirus. Once I held that little puppy in my arms and saw how she had imprinted on me and how she looked to me for security, my dog-mom protective mode took me back to what I had seen in multiple shows. My brain went back to the episodes where I saw puppies being brought into vet clinics: lethargic, vomiting, having diarrhea, and in an EXTREMELY fragile state due to Parvo. The vets would have to inform the pawrents that their fury baby would have to be quarantined and monitored closely for the next few days. The part of all this that scared me most was remembering how the doctors would explain off camera that this illness could have been prevented if the puppy had been vaccinated for Parvo. Also, how they would explain that there is no cure for Parvo, only symptom management, and that it is highly lethal because its up to the puppy's fragile and underdeveloped immune system to fight it as best as possible. Many vets gave their little patients a dire prognosis with Parvo with a survival rate of only 50/50.

Although this information had instilled that anxiety and fear in me, this knowledge was also my motivation to be proactive with Athena. I know and understand that no disease is preventable 100%, but I knew that if I took this information to heart and followed my new pawrental instinct I could do the best by my fur baby and give her a good fighting chance at a healthy and long life. It also made me realize that, if I knew this much about Parvo and it was so dangerous, how much more danger was out there for her in terms of diseases? How many more things would be out there waiting to claim her little life if I did not get her proper preventative care? Thank God, once again, for my husband's past dog-dad experience because it was through him and his family that I was able to find the wonderful clinic of which Athena is now a proud patient of!

It became my responsibility, and I happily accepted the challenge, of making sure that all her vaccination appointments were made. The trips to her Dr. were quick and easy thanks to the wonderful staff at her clinic. They made the process so simple for a: first-time, anxious, and naive dog mom! I made sure to ask each and every questi0n I could think of at each visit, even if it meant spending 10-20 minutes with the vet tech before them taking her back. I wanted to make sure I understood, at least somewhat, of what they were doing for her and to her. I also wanted to make sure that I had an idea of aftercare and what to look out for, even if the chances of the side effects were minimal to none.

I can happily say that Athena is now: fully vaccinated, chipped, and spayed! (the decision to spay will be the topic of another post on its own so... stay tuned!) It brings me great joy to know that, even in the midst of a dark time, she has taught me to learn to forget about myself for a bit. With this experience I have learned not only the experience of the vaccination process for another living being, but also how much caring for another life really grounds us. Throughout this entire process my focus was my puppy. It was on making sure that she was on schedule, that her records were complete, and that I had information on HER and for her instead of myself. It's been wonderful and special knowing that she was helping my Mental Health and well-being while I made sure her health was being looked after.

To all my new pawrents out there who are potentially nervous on the whole vaccination process... relax and breathe :). As a new dog-mom I can say is there are so many people out there willing to help you and guide you on caring for your furry companion. If you are on this path now and perhaps don't know where to start, I suggest contacting other pawrents around you who have already gone through this process themselves and can guide you to a Vet MD. Once you have the right professional looking after your little companion, everything else is smooth sailing. Also, do your homework! Research information, watch shows that are dedicated to fur babies, and be willing to learn! When you are at the appointments, ASK QUESTIONS. This is not the time or place to remain silent. If you have any doubt on anything, regardless of how big or small the doubt is, ask! No questions is too dumb or silly when your fur-baby's life depends on it.