When a puppy is born, it receives passive (m
aternal) immunity from its mother in the form of maternal antibodies. Maternal antibodies protect the newborn from the diseases against which the mother was protected. Maternal antibodies only last a few weeks in the puppy; this duration is directly proportional to the level of immunity the mother has. This passive immunity is passed to the puppy through colostrum during the first nursing between mother and puppy. As an example if mom's immunity level against rabies is very high, the maternal antibodies for rabies may last up to three months. If her level is low, they may persist only five or six weeks. As long as they are present, the puppy is passively protected; however, those antibodies also block a vaccine challenge. In this example, if a puppy receives a vaccination for rabies before the maternal rabies antibodies are gone, the vaccine's effect is blocked, and little to no immunity develops. The same holds true for the other components of the vaccines; temporary immunity received from the mother can interfere with all of the vaccinations
All of our puppies participate in a shot program that is formed around guidance provided and developed by an industry known and respected vet, Dr. Page. The first series of vaccinations that our puppies are known as "single antigen" vaccines. These vaccines are specifically formulated to protect against a very specific virus(s) as opposed to a "combination" shot which cover multiple virus(s). By 10 weeks of age all of our puppies have received 8 vaccinations.
