Dog and Cat Vaccinations in Silver Spring, MD
Keep your pet protected with a customized vaccine plan.
Vaccines are one of the most reliable tools in veterinary medicine. They're also one of the most misunderstood. Some vaccines are required by law, while others depend entirely on where your pet goes, who they spend time with, and what they're exposed to. At Layhill Animal Hospital, we start vaccine conversations with where your pet spends their time. It is based on that information that we make our recommendations.
Core Vaccines for Dogs and Cats
Core vaccines are recommended for virtually every pet regardless of lifestyle. The diseases they protect against are highly contagious, potentially fatal, or transmissible to people.
For dogs:
- Rabies: Required by Maryland law for all dogs. Rabies is fatal, transmissible to people, and the only vaccine mandated by law in Maryland.
- DHPP: A combination vaccine covering distemper, hepatitis, parvovirus, and parainfluenza. These are four of the most serious and contagious diseases dogs face, and DHPP is the foundation of every dog's vaccine schedule.
- Leptospirosis: Recently moved into the core category by the American Animal Hospital Association because any dog that goes outside can be exposed, in cities as much as in rural areas. It spreads through water and soil contaminated by wildlife urine. Backyards, parks, and sidewalk puddles are all potential sources.
For cats:
- Rabies: Required by Maryland law for all cats, including cats who live entirely indoors.
- FVRCP: A combination vaccine covering feline viral rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, and panleukopenia. These are highly contagious respiratory and systemic diseases that can reach indoor cats through contact with clothing, shoes, or other animals, not just through direct outdoor exposure.
Lifestyle Vaccines: What Depends on Your Pet's Life
Beyond the basics, some vaccines come down to your pet's life specifically: where they go, who they're around, and what they're exposed to.
For dogs:
- Bordetella (kennel cough): Protects against a highly contagious respiratory infection that spreads easily anywhere dogs share space. Required by most boarding facilities, daycares, and dog parks. If your dog spends time around other dogs, plan on it.
- Influenza: Protects against canine influenza virus, which spreads rapidly between dogs through respiratory droplets and contaminated surfaces. Usually required for dogs who frequent boarding, grooming, or daycare facilities where close contact is unavoidable.
- Lyme: Protects against a tick-borne bacterial infection that can cause joint pain, fever, and kidney disease in dogs. Worth considering for dogs who spend time in wooded areas, tall grass, or anywhere deer and wildlife are common. The Silver Spring area has active tick populations, especially in and around Rock Creek Park.
For cats:
- Feline leukemia: Protects against a viral infection that suppresses the immune system and is one of the leading causes of illness and death in cats. Spread through close contact with infected cats. Recommended for young cats and adult cats who go outside or live with cats who do. For cats who live strictly indoors with no contact with outside cats, Dr. Adelman will look at that specific pet's situation before making a recommendation.
Puppy and Kitten Vaccine Schedules
Puppies and kittens aren’t born fully protected. While they get some immunity from their mother, it wears off at different rates in different animals. The puppy and kitten vaccine series is timed to close that window: building protection before maternal immunity fades while their immune system is still developing.
Puppies and kittens usually start their series around eight weeks and are seen every three to four weeks through at least sixteen weeks. Each visit builds on the last. Core vaccines are given throughout this window, and lifestyle vaccines are added based on what we know about where the pet lives and what their life will look like.
By the end of the series, your pet has solid protection against the diseases most likely to affect them, and Dr. Adelman has a clear picture of what their ongoing schedule should look like.
Adult and Senior Vaccine Schedules
Once the initial vaccine series is done, pets move to a maintenance schedule. Not everything needs to be given every year.
Rabies boosters follow a schedule based on the vaccine used and Maryland law: typically one year after the first vaccine, then every three years. DHPP and FVRCP boosters are given annually at first, then every three years for most adult patients. Vaccines like Leptospirosis, Lyme, Bordetella, Influenza, and Feline Leukemia are generally given annually. At every wellness visit, Dr. Adelman reviews what's actually due and what isn't.
For senior pets, the vaccine conversation shifts a little. As pets get older, Dr. Adelman weighs each vaccine against the individual animal's overall health. Some stay on the same schedule throughout a pet's life. Others are reconsidered based on changing health or lifestyle.
If Your Pet Has Had a Vaccine Reaction
Mild reactions after vaccination are uncommon but not unusual: a few hours of lethargy, soreness at the injection site, a low-grade fever. These usually resolve on their own within a day.
More serious reactions (facial swelling, hives, vomiting, difficulty breathing) are rare but need immediate attention. If your pet has had anything beyond mild post-vaccine tiredness before, tell us before the appointment. That history changes how the visit goes.
Pets with a known reaction history are seen with that context in mind. Dr. Adelman will look at which vaccine caused the reaction, what the response looked like, and what makes sense going forward. That might mean pre-medicating before certain vaccines, spacing vaccines out across separate visits instead of giving several at once, or reconsidering a non-core vaccine when the reaction risk outweighs the exposure risk for that specific pet. The goal is protection, without creating a problem in the process.
Frequently Asked Questions About Pet Vaccinations
Rabies is the only vaccine required by Maryland law, and it applies to both dogs and cats. All other vaccines are recommended based on your pet's health and what they're actually exposed to.
Core vaccines are recommended for virtually every pet because the diseases they protect against are dangerous, contagious, or transmissible to people. Lifestyle vaccines protect against diseases that some pets are exposed to and others aren't, depending on where they go and what they do. Dr. Adelman goes through the lifestyle vaccines with every client.
For core vaccines, yes. Rabies is required by Maryland law regardless of indoor status, and FVRCP protects against diseases that can reach indoor cats through contact with shoes, clothing, or other animals, not just through direct outdoor exposure. The feline leukemia vaccine is advised for cats who go outside or are exposed to cats that go outside. Dr. Adelman will base his advice on your cat's actual situation.
It depends on the vaccine. Rabies is boosted one year after the first vaccine, then typically every three years. DHPP and FVRCP move to every three years for most adult patients. Lifestyle vaccines like Bordetella are generally annual. At every visit, Dr. Adelman reviews what's actually due.
Tell us before the visit. Knowing which vaccine caused the reaction and what happened changes how we plan the appointment. That might mean pre-medicating, spacing vaccines across separate visits, or taking a second look at whether a non-core vaccine makes sense for your pet. A reaction history doesn't mean your pet can't be vaccinated. It means we're more careful about how we do it.
It's a common concern and one Dr. Adelman takes seriously. That's why Layhill doesn't apply oneprotocol to all pets. Adult booster intervals for DHPP and FVRCP have moved to every three years for most patients because immunity from those vaccines last longer. Lifestyle vaccines are only given when there's real exposure risk. The goal is the right protection.
New clients are welcome at Layhill Animal Hospital. Call (301) 598-7300 or request an appointment online.