What are non-core vaccines for kittens, and why does my kitten need them?

Non-core vaccines are the opposite of what I just described. There are vaccines that may not be necessary in every cat and your cat may not need them if that's the case. So, first off, if you have an indoor cat, is he going to need things like FIV, feline immunodeficiency? Yeah, probably not. He has to get that through the bite wound of an infected cat. How's that going to happen if he lives indoors 24/7? So, that's a non-core vaccine.

Might it fit the lifestyle of a barn cat living out in the country who's with 20 other barn cats and likely to be getting into fights? Absolutely, it would be recommended there. So it depends on the cat's lifestyle. Other non-core vaccines are things like feline bordetella, calici, and chlamydia. Those are about the only three I can think of right now, but those are non-cores.

The non-core vaccines are more what we would call a lifestyle vaccine. Some might say the Leukemia vaccine is a non-core vaccine, but kittens are the most susceptible. If they're going to be strictly indoors and they're never going to see another cat, then that wouldn't be something we would continue to recommend for your kitten as they get older. There are other vaccines that, depending on their risk, we might recommend depending on your situation. Bordetella is a respiratory vaccine that we do consider. We recommend it for all cats because we feel like it keeps them safe and they get fewer respiratory diseases, but it is not a core vaccine.

The one non-core vaccine is feline leukemia. I think it is crucially important to vaccinate for it, even though it's not considered non-core. The reason I would not consider it non-core is that not every cat needs it. It depends on their lifestyle and the environment they're in. If you've got a cat that goes outside, they definitely should be getting the feline leukemia vaccine. If they never go outside and never come into contact with another cat that goes outside, they don't need the leukemia vaccine. But for those cats that go out, even if they're in and out only going out for short periods of time, they should definitely get the feline leukemia vaccine because it is a life-threatening disease that's primarily spread through saliva and blood exchanged in cat fights or cats that groom one another. In one way, you can consider it non-core because not every cat needs it, but for those cats that do go outside, they 100% should be getting it.

We'll talk about core vaccines first before talking about non-core. Core vaccines are considered the most important thing for your kittens, especially in the United States. They are vaccines for the most common diseases that we can prevent. The first one, of course, is rabies. Rabies can be given starting at 13 weeks and then needs to be given once a year after that. Rabies is transmissible to people, which is why it's so important. It is a hundred percent fatal to animals, so it's super important. Even if your cat or kitten doesn't go outside, it's super important because things can happen. Here in Texas, we have endemic rabies. Skunks can carry rabies and show no symptoms. There was an instance even where a raccoon got inside and bit an indoor kitty cat who had to be put down because that raccoon carried rabies. Fluke things happen, and it's super important to follow. It's also Texas state law. Non-core vaccines would be something like feline leukemia. Feline leukemia is known as the Kitty-Loving Loving Disease because it's transmitted by cats when they're grooming and loving each other. It's usually fatal as well. We recommend it for cats that go outside and interact, but if they're indoor only, they're low risk. Another core vaccine that's super important is our FVRCP, which is basically for feline upper respiratory viruses that can be detrimental to their health and can create emergency situations. Just like we get vaccinated for the flu, or some of us get vaccinated for COVID-19, FVRCP is considered a core vaccine because it is one of the most common transmissible diseases in kittens.

Non-core vaccines for kittens include the Bordetella vaccine and the FIP vaccine. Core vaccines are the FVRCP, rabies, and leukemia vaccines.

For kittens, all vaccines are considered core vaccines. However, if your kitten is going to be in an area with a lot of other cats, a chlamydia vaccine may be added, which is part of the FVRCP. This vaccine is not carried at every clinic, but many shelters use it due to the high risk of exposure in those environments.