Vaccines in Shelters and Group Settings

Dogs and cats entering animal shelters are at high risk of acquiring 1 or more contagious infectious diseases. Such animals may be severely stressed, exhausted, and unwell, as well as malnourished and parasitized. The typically high throughput of shelter animals, many of them young and of unknown vaccination status, plays a role. Vaccines are a crucially important part of the management approach to limiting morbidity, mortality, and spread of infection. Guidelines for the use of vaccines in shelters have been published and are reviewed and discussed in this article.