Guest jenna1984 Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Help - our dog had his booster jab with Lepto in January. We've arranged with our shipping company for him to fly out in July, however we have just been informed by our vet that he can't have his blood test for lepto until a minimum of 6 months has passed since his jab. Is this correct? I was under the impression that if he failed the first test, he would be re-tested until he passed. We are emigrating in a few weeks, our dog will be staying with my mam in the meantime but we really don't want to leave him here any longer than we have to :cry: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oidara Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 Sounds like maybe your vet is getting lepto confused with rabies? As far as I understand it, you're supposed to avoid having a lepto jab at all because otherwise your dog will show up antibodies in the blood tests required within 30 days of export. If antibodies are high, they retest again 2 weeks later. If they are less than 1:800, then I think it's okay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoandJon Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 You can have the blood test whenever you like - so long as its within the time limit before flying. But - the longer you wait the more likely it is to be ok you could ask the vet to do a 'trial' lepto test to see the results before u do the full gamut (dont forget the flea trtmnt etc) satch had lepto in late dec and her tests in mid sept were fine. But apparently it varies frpm dog to dog - satch is a rescue and we're almost certaib her jabs with us were her first ever. And yes you csn keep testing until its ok, but all the tests have to meet the aqis requirments. Your vet sounds lkke they're trying to be realistic and save yyou stress and money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoandJon Posted February 7, 2012 Share Posted February 7, 2012 To be clear : satch had the vaccine NOT the disease! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobPetairUK Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Dear Jenna1984 The 6 month wait is a recommended wait to try to allow the antibody levels to come back down again. We have seen dogs who had a vaccination 1 month before the test and have had no antibodies and one dog (owned by a vet actually) who had a vaccination 18 months before the blood test date and the titre level was too high. The thing to ask your vet is to do the first round of samples as normal (they can take all the blood samples for all 4 things) and apply the antitick treatment and send them all off to the lab, but ask the lab to do the Lepto test only first. That way if the lepto test is ok you can then get the others done, and if the lepto test is not ok then you dont waste the money getting the other tests done. If he gets a negative on his first test, he is fine. if he gets a weak positive (1/400 or 1/100 positive) then he needs another sample after 14 days (he does not need a negative sample, but can fly with 2 weakly positive samples). if his results is 1/800 or more then you probably ought to retest him every month until it comes down to 1/400. The first 2 outcomes are much more likely than the third. Just check with your shipper what happens if you have to postpone the flight because of the lepto test. If they are going to charge you lots then let me know. I hope that helps and give us a shout if you need anything else. Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jenna1984 Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Thanks for confirming that guys, i'm a bid concerned that my vet doesn't have a complete understanding of the AQIS requirements. He'd never seen the rabies declaration form before that I asked him to complete and seems to think we need a Pet passport :confused: I've asked him to contact Defra to confirm everything. We only got our visa a week after Bailey had had his jab and have decided to move quickly, which unfortunately has caused problems for Bailey. The earliest he can go out due to the rabies requirements is 2nd July so i didn't really want to wait until August to do the lepto test. By the sounds of it he's going to need to be tested a few times, but I think it's the best way to go Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jenna1984 Posted February 8, 2012 Share Posted February 8, 2012 Thanks for the advice Bob, that's really helpful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobPetairUK Posted February 9, 2012 Share Posted February 9, 2012 Dear Jenna Have you already booked and got all sorted with the other shipper, just that we do offer a full service where we can take care of everything - rabies declaration/bloods/permits/whatever you prefer. I know we have a reputation for being expensive, but by the time you pay the shipper/your vets/AQIS for the permit/transport to Heathrow, our full service is usually only £100-£200 more than doing it all yourself and you get someone to do it for you. email me on bob@petairuk.com if you would like a quote - that part is free! Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jenna1984 Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Thanks Bob. We are already sorted with another shipping company. They've been helpful, the only problem has been with my vet. I think I have clear understanding of everything myself now, so just need to make sure they do as I ask. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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