The Rabies Challenge Fund

02/11/2021

Our full paper as published in the April 2020 issue of The Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research (Vol. 84, No. 2) --Duration of immunity after rabies vaccination in dogs: The Rabies Challenge Fund research study

A prospective study of 65 research beagles kept in a rabies-free environment was undertaken to determine the duration of immunity after they received licensed rabies vaccines. The eventual goal was to extend mandated rabies booster intervals to 5 or 7 ...

02/11/2021

Following completion of our research study and publication of the results in the April 2020 issue of The Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research (Vol. 84, No. 2), The Rabies Challenge Fund retired its IRS non-profit corporation status, as of the end of December 2020. The $6,000 balance remaining in the fund at that time was equally distributed in $1,000 increments to the following 501(c)(3) charitable organizations:

1) Pets of the Homeless (https://www.petsofthehomeless.org/) providing pet food and emergency veterinary care to pets that belong to homeless people

2) Magic Bullet Fund (https://themagicbulletfund.org/) financial assistance for dogs & cats with cancer

3) Handicapped Pet Foundation (https://hpets.org/) donating wheelchairs to pets in need

4) Bow Wow Buddies (https://www.bowwowbuddies.com/) dedicated to helping sick and injured dogs by funding urgent medical care and aiding with veterinary bills for serious conditions

5) Onyx & Breezy Foundation (https://www.onyxandbreezy.org/) supporting rescue of animals from kill shelters; food, medicine & suppies; medicine & equipment for military & police canines, etc...

6) Frankie's Friends (https://www.frankiesfriends.org/national-frankies-friends-fund) providing financial assistance grants to family owned pets in need of lifesaving emergency or specialty veterinary care whose caregivers cannot afford the full cost of treatment

We would like to thank our supporters for providing the funding for this unprecedented grass-roots rabies challenge research study.

04/18/2020

https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/rabies-vaccine-challenge-fund-results/

The Rabies Challenge Fund conducted 2 studies to try and extend state-mandated rabies vaccine frequency. Here's the full study and learn about the findings.

04/03/2020

After scientific peer review, The Rabies Challenge Fund paper has just been published in the Canadian Journal of Veterinary Research April 2020 issue Vol. 84 No. 02, pages 153-158 (link and abstract below). We will seek permission to publish the paper in full on our website. In the meantime, excerpts from the paper which may answer some of your questions are posted beneath the abstract.

Duration of Immunity After Rabies Vaccination in Dogs: The Rabies Challenge Fund research study
W. Jean Dodds, Laurie J. Larson, Kris L. Christine, Ronald D. Schultz (page 153-158)



ABSTRACT

A prospective study of 65 research beagles kept in a rabies-free environment was undertaken to determine the duration of immunity after they received licensed rabies vaccines. The eventual goal was to extend mandated rabies booster intervals to 5 or 7 years and help reduce the risk of vaccine-associated adverse events. Three groups of dogs were vaccinated with 1 of 2 commercial rabies vaccines or saline at 12 and 15 weeks of age. Beginning 5 years 5 months later, vaccinated and unvaccinated dogs were challenged with virulent rabies virus and observed for 90 days over a series of 3 trials. Humoral and cellular immune responses were examined by serology and flow cytometry. Brain tissue from all challenged dogs was tested for rabies virus. Challenge trial 1 was confounded due to insufficiently virulent virus. In trials 2 and 3 virulent challenge provided 100% mortality in controls. Vaccinate survival was 80% (4/5) after 6 years 7 months, 50% (6/12) after 7 years 1 month, and 20% (1/5) after 8years 0 months. Antibody responses 12 days post-challenge correlated strongly with survival. In a separate non-challenge trial, administration of either a recombinant or a killed rabies vaccine demonstrated memory antibody responses 6 years 1 month after initial vaccination compared with unvaccinated controls. Our data demonstrated that i) duration of immunity to rabies in vaccinated dogs extends beyond 3 years; ii) immunologic memory exists even in vaccinated dogs with serum antibody titer < 0.1 IU/mL; and iii) non-adjuvanted recombinant rabies vaccine induces excellent antibody responses in previously vaccinated dogs 14 days after administration.



EXCERPTS


..Challenge trial 1 was confounded when the requisite number of control dogs failed to show clinical signs of infection after challenge as sufficiently virulent rabies challenge virus was not available to the researchers at the 5 y and 5 mo post vaccination mark..... We believe that had trial 1 been conducted with a fully virulent challenge virus at the 5-year mark, it would have met the USDA 9 CFR ≥ 88% survival requirement.


...Conclusions and Clinical Relevance - The Rabies Challenge Fund trials have confirmed that rabies vaccine may induce a duration of immunity well beyond 3 y in dogs; that antibody is the most important protective factor against rabies virus; and that anamnestic responses to virulent challenge can be seen in the absence of protective titers in previously vaccinated dogs. We have shown that protection persists in the absence of annual or triennial re-vaccination and that antibody testing of individual pets can be an excellent indicator of protection or lack thereof, although further studies are needed to determine a protective antibody threshold for vaccinated dogs.

These data serve as a foundation meriting further studies to: i) license a rabies vaccine with a vaccination interval of 5 to 6 y, which would enable States to incorporate extended booster intervals into their rabies laws/regulations; ii) develop and license a recombinant, non-adjuvanted rabies booster vaccine for dogs; and iii) establish a protective serum rabies titer standard for dogs. In addition, these data support the dual goals of better and safer rabies vaccination of pet dogs as well as improved public health security.

A prospective study of 65 research beagles kept in a rabies-free environment was undertaken to determine the duration of immunity after they received licensed rabies vaccines. The eventual goal was to extend mandated rabies booster intervals to 5 or 7 ...

01/31/2020

DELAWARE has passed a rabies medical exemption bill (HB 214) January 28, 2020, making it the 19th state in the nation allowing rabies vaccination waivers for unhealthy pets.

PLEASE NOTE: the titer test is limited to "the case of these medical exemptions" and does not apply to healthy animals.

Section 1. Amend § 8204, Title 3 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strikethrough and insertions as shown by underline as follows and redesignating accordingly:

§ 8204. Rabies vaccination required for dogs , and cats , and ferrets ; antirabies clinics.

(a) Vaccination of dogs. —

(1) Any person owning a dog 6 months of age or older in this State shall have that dog vaccinated against rabies by a veterinarian ; exemption from vaccination against rabies may be permitted if a licensed veterinarian has examined the animal and based on the veterinarian’s professional judgment, has certified in writing that at the time, vaccination would endanger the animal’s health because of its age, infirmity, disability, illness, or other medical considerations and a titer test, in the case of these medical exemptions, may be administered to assist in determining the need for the vaccination . The owner of the dog will receive a copy of the rabies vaccination certificate legibly signed by the veterinarian. The owner of the dog will be responsible for keeping a valid rabies vaccination certificate or exemption certificate in their possession for inspection by an animal control officer, the Department of Agriculture or the Division of Public Health, if deemed necessary. Certification that the animal is exempt from vaccination shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of the issuance of the certificate of exemption, after which time the animal shall be re-examined by a licensed veterinarian and vaccinated against rabies or a new certificate of exemption shall be issued to the animal’s owner.

Bill Text (2020-01-28) An Act To Amend Titles 3 And 16 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Rabies And Other Vaccination Requirements, And Licensing. [Passed By Senate. Votes: 20 YES 1 ABSENT]

12/15/2019

"...adverse vaccine reactions can occur in veterinary medicine. Many cases are associated with either misuse of the vaccine or overvaccination.

An updated overview of the various forms of adverse vaccine reaction was provided last year in Veterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice.1 The author, Laurel J. Gershwin, DVM, PhD, DACVM, a long-time immunology professor at the University of California, Davis, serves on the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Council on Biologic and Therapeutic Agents, which oversees vaccination principles for the association. In her article, Dr. Gershwin described the current understanding of adverse vaccine reactions in veterinary medicine, including type I and type III hypersensitivities, vaccine-associated fibrosarcoma, vaccine-associated disease enhancement and formation of autoimmune disease."

Although rare, several forms of adverse reactions have been documented after vaccination in dogs and cats. Here’s what veterinary teams need to know today.

02/15/2019

PERMISSION TO SHARE/REPOST

Ever since its founding in 2006, The Rabies Challenge Fund’s cornerstone position has been that rabies laws/regulations should be based upon scientific data – specifically data meeting the Code of Federal Regulations (9 CFR 113.209) standard for rabies vaccine licensing.



In order to protect animal and public health, we assert that animals should only be vaccinated against rabies as often as necessary to confer/maintain immunity and to avoid any unnecessary risk of vaccinal adverse reactions. It is also The Rabies Challenge Fund’s position that antibody testing by a federal or state approved lab is an important measure to assure protection against rabies. Until adequate data exists supporting a specific antibody threshold at which animals are demonstrated to be immune to rabies challenge, we believe it is premature for state rabies laws/regulations to allow for titers in lieu of vaccination.



The Rabies Challenge Fund further contends that all states should have medical exemption clauses in their rabies laws/regulations allowing veterinarians to write waivers of rabies vaccinations for animals they have determined within the framework of a current client-patient relationship to be too ill or had a documented prior serious adverse reaction to the rabies vaccine.



The current standard of care according to state laws/regulations and The National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians’ Rabies Compendium dictates that full doses of rabies vaccine are administered to an animal per the manufacturer’s labeled instructions. The Rabies Challenge Fund does not support the practice of administering reduced rabies vaccine doses. There are no published, peer-reviewed data meeting 9 CFR 113.209 which confirm immunity to rabies in animals vaccinated with reduced dosages.



Adhering to our principle tenet that rabies laws/regulations should be based upon the same scientific standard that rabies vaccine manufacturers are held to, we will continue to support or promote legislation protecting animals from redundant/medically unsound rabies vaccination. We will actively oppose rabies legislation which does not meet the same standard.



The Rabies Challenge Fund has actively engaged in legislation to protect animals from being overvaccinated against rabies. Our efforts have resulted in substantial changes to rabies laws, and while some local municipalities continue to require annual and biennial boosters, all 50 states now recognize and allow animals to be immunized with a 3 year vaccine.

Arguing that state rabies laws/local ordinances should be based upon science, The Rabies Challenge Fund’s legislative action helped to change annual and biennial booster mandates to the 3 year national standard in Bell County, Texas; Cheyenne, Wyoming; Wichita, Kansas; Killeen, Texas; New Orleans, Louisiana; and the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Maine, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.

In addition, efforts by The Rabies Challenge Fund led to passage of legislation inserting medical exemption clauses into rabies laws/regulations in the states of Alabama, California, Maine, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

The Rabies Challenge Fund has actively promoted medical exemption legislation which failed to pass in the states of Missouri, New Mexico, Georgia, and Iowa.

We vigorously opposed bills in the states of California, Maine, and Michigan lowering the age at which puppies are required to be vaccinated against rabies.

In 2012, The Rabies Challenge Fund successfully advocated for passage of legislation in Delaware which prevented veterinarians from issuing 1 or 2 year rabies certificates when a 3 year vaccine is administered.

We actively worked to ensure that Minnesota veterinarians administering a 3 year rabies vaccine be required to issue a 3 year certificate. This resulted in the state issuing a Rabies Vaccination Guidance Document: https://mn.gov/boards/assets/RabiesVaccinationGuidanceDocument_tcm21-26916.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2tohhJsL9Sn9VYekvt8wkOl3ZdlgtCs-v6smE9H3ydE-enTZobs9ZsGlM .



In summary, The Rabies Challenge Fund has made significant advances in the effort to decrease risk of adverse reactions to rabies vaccination for pets across a large portion of the United States. We will continue to work for legislative changes that can be solidly supported by scientific findings, and actively oppose such proposals not supported by currently available science.

02/09/2019

The RCF has sent the following letter to the Connecticut General Assembly to oppose HB 6248 and address misinformation contained in Dr. John Robb's "proclamation" accompanying the bill:

February 8, 2019

RE: Oppose HB 6248, An Act Concerning the Vaccination of Animals

Greetings Senator Cohen and Representative Demicco:

The Rabies Challenge Fund strongly urges the members of the Joint Committee on Environment to vote “Ought Not to Pass” on HB 6248, An Act Concerning the Vaccination of Animals.

Our position is that rabies laws/regulations should be based on science. Currently, there are no published studies on reduced rabies vaccine doses meeting the Code of Federal Regulations (9 CFR 113.209) standard for rabies vaccine licensing. We believe that animals should only be vaccinated against rabies as often as necessary to confer/maintain immunity and that antibody testing by a federal or state approved lab is an important measure to assure protection against rabies. As yet, there are no challenge data fulfilling the Title 9 Code cited above establishing a specific titer level at which immunity to rabies has been demonstrated.

As the “Proclamation” filed by Dr. John Robb for this bill has multiple inaccuracies, misinformation, and misquotes attributed to The Rabies Challenge Fund and its principals, we would like to set the record straight below.

• Killed rabies vaccines do not function in the same manner as modified live viral vaccines such as canine distemper or parvovirus. These vaccines must not be conflated with each other.
• One or two killed rabies vaccinations are not expected to convey, nor guarantee a lifetime duration of immunity against rabies, and there are no published challenge data demonstrating lifetime protection against rabies from killed rabies vaccines.
• Results of Dr. Dodds’ half dose vaccine pilot study were only for distemper and parvovirus and do not apply at all to rabies vaccine doses.
• Dr. Schultz follows the mandated Wisconsin rabies protocol for vaccinating his animals against rabies.

Despite several requests from Drs. Schultz and Dodds to retract misleading and mistaken quotations and literature attributed to them, Dr. Robb has apparently chosen to ignore them.

Due to insufficient data to support the amendments to the state’s rabies laws/regulations contained in HB 6248, The Rabies Challenge Fund strongly advises that your committee vote that this bill “Ought Not to Pass.”

Respectfully submitted,

Kris L. Christine, Founder & Co-Trustee
W. Jean Dodds, DVM, Co-Trustee
Ronald D. Schultz, Ph.D., Priniciple Investigator
Laurie J. Larson, DVM, Assistant Investigator

03/22/2018

https://drjeandoddspethealthresource.tumblr.com/post/48128200923/clinical-approaches-managing-treating-adverse-vaccine-re #.WrQDstEpChA

Background There is no doubt that application of modern vaccine technology has permitted us to protect companion animals effectively against serious infectious diseases. Viral disease and recent...

03/08/2018

Vaccine Dosage Age -- Optimal age for full immune response, Same for all breeds and sizes 12 weeks + for puppies; 10 weeks for kittens

Dr. Jean Dodds recently gave two invited lectures on vaccine issues and guidelines for veterinarians in Israel. She would like to thank BioGal Galed Laboratories and the Israel Veterinary Medical...

02/01/2018

WSB-TV's Story on HB742, Rabies Medical Exemption Bill for Georgia. Of particular note is the quote from veterinarian, Dr. Jyothi Alagappan: "All vaccines in the vet profession are labeled for use in healthy animals only, so that sort of explains it all."

Watch Atlanta news videos from WSB-TV. The latest local news videos from the Atlanta Metro area. Sports, crime, and the latest entertainment.

01/29/2018

ACTION ALERT: GEORGIA RABIES MEDICAL EXEMPTION BILL HB742, Ruby's Law, which would insert a medical exemption clause into Georgia's rabies laws has been filed and assigned to the Agriculture Com. Please contact the following legislators and ask them to pass the bill, e-mails should have "PASS HB742 Ruby's Law" in the subject line. The Rabies Challenge Fund's letter of support follows the contact info. PERMISSION GRANTED TO SHARE AND CROSS-POST

Rep. Tom McCall (chair of Ag. Com) 404-656-5099 fax: 404-656-6897 [email protected]
Rep. Susan Holmes (vice-chair Ag. Com.) 404-656-0178 [email protected]
Rep. Robert Dickey (secr. Ag. Com.) 404-463-2246 [email protected]
Rep. Patty Bentley 404-656-0287 [email protected]
Rep. Jon Burns 404-656-5052 [email protected]
Rep. Kevin Cooke 404-656-0188 [email protected]
Rep. Winfred Dukes 404-656-0126 [email protected]
Rep. Emory Dunahoo 404-656-0152 [email protected]
Rep. Terry England 404-463-2247 [email protected]
Rep. Bubber Epps 404-656-7855 [email protected]
Rep. Buddy Harden 404-656-7855 [email protected]
Rep. Rick Jasperse 404-656-7857 [email protected]
Rep. Tom Kirby 404-656-0177 fax: 404-651-8086 [email protected]
Rep. Dominic LaRiccia 404-656-0213 [email protected]
Rep. Clay Pirkle 404-656-0188 [email protected]
Rep. Regina Quick 404-656-0220 [email protected]
Rep. Jan Tankersley 404-656-7855 [email protected]
Rep. Darlene Taylor 404-656-7857 [email protected]
Rep. Scot Turner 404-656-0152 [email protected]
Rep. Sam Watson 404-656-0213 [email protected]
Rep. Matt Curtler (sponsor & Ag. Com.) 404-656-0188 [email protected]
Rep. Bill McGowan (sponsor) 404-656-6372 [email protected]
Rep. John Pezold (sponsor) [email protected]
Rep. David Stover (sponsor) 404-656-0177 [email protected]
Rep. Michael Smith (sponsor) 404-656-0265 [email protected]
Rep. Jason Spencer (sponsor) 404-656-0177 fax: 404-463-2976 [email protected]

http://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/en-US/Display/20172018/HB/742

LETTER FROM THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND

January 28, 2018

Representative Tom McCall, Chairman Representative Matt Gurtler, Sponsor
House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Com.

RE: Georgia Rabies Medical Exemption Bill HB742

Greetings Representatives McCall and Gurtler:

The Rabies Challenge Fund strongly supports and endorses passage of Ruby’s Law, HB742, which would create a medical exemption option for Georgia’s animals determined by a licensed veterinarian to be too ill to be vaccinated against rabies.

The 18 states of Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin have medical exemption clauses in their rabies laws, and the veterinary medical associations setting the national standard of professional veterinary care have officially recognized the need for rabies immunization exemptions in medically warranted cases.

Posted on the American Veterinary Medical Association’s (AVMA) website is the following policy statement on rabies medical exemptions: “…[the] AVMA recognizes some animals might require a waiver from rabies vaccination because the vaccination poses an unacceptably high risk to the health of the individual animal….[and] recommends that such animals be granted a waiver from mandatory rabies vaccination, upon recommendation of a licensed veterinarian.”[1]

In addition, the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPH) asserts in their Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control 2016 that: “…ill animals may not have a full immunologic response to vaccination.”[2]

The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) cautioned in their Canine Vaccine Guidelines that: "It is reasonable to avoid administration of any vaccine to patients with a history of systemic disease suspected to be associated with previous vaccination (e.g., immune-mediated hemolytic anemia, immune-mediated thrombocytopenia) or known to be caused by vaccine (vaccination-site cutaneous ischemic vasculitis after administration of rabies vaccine),”[3] and that “…veterinary medicine has advised against vaccination during illness, due to concerns about suboptimal protection, or worse, vaccine-induced illness.”[4] They further advise veterinarians "...to avoid administration of any vaccine to patients with a history of systemic disease suspected to be associated with previous vaccination (e.g., immune-mediated hemolytic anemia, immune-mediated thrombocytopenia) or known to be caused by vaccine (vaccination-site cutaneous ischemic vasculitis after administration of rabies vaccine),” [5] and that “[d]ogs receiving immunosuppressive chemotherapy should not be vaccinated.” [6]

Rabies vaccine labels affirm that they are for “the vaccination of healthy cats, [and] dogs.” Zoetis Defensor 1 and Defensor 3 rabies vaccine labels warn that: "[a] protective immune response may not be elicited if animals are incubating an infectious disease are malnourished or parasitized are stressed due to shipment or environmental conditions are otherwise immunocompromised…."[7] Passage of HB742 would enable Georgia’s veterinarians to write medical exemptions for animals whose lives would be jeopardized by or whose medical conditions would be exacerbated by rabies vaccination, including those with past anaphylactic reactions to the vaccine or those suffering from cancer, kidney/liver failure, hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, lymphoma, grand mal seizures, and chronic autoimmune disorders.

Without a provision for medical exemptions in Chapter 19, Title 31, Section 2 of the Official Code of Georgia, the state’s rabies immunization requirement poses an ethical dilemma for veterinarians with seriously ill patients. They must either violate their Veterinarian’s Oath by administering a rabies vaccine contrary to the manufacturer’s labeled instructions and contrary to the principles of sound medical care established by the national veterinary medical associations noted above, or recommend that clients not comply with the law to vaccinate their sick animals. Veterinarians also face potential liability for adverse reactions suffered when immunizing against rabies in a manner inconsistent with the vaccine’s labeled instructions. Pet owners may choose not to comply with the law rather than risk pets’ lives and subsequently fail to license them to avoid detection.

The Rabies Challenge Fund urges you to pass HB742, Ruby’s Law, to include a medical exemption clause in Georgia’s rabies law.

Please contact us if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Kris L. Christine
Founder,Co-Trustee
W. Jean Dodds, DVM, Co-Trustee
THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND
www.RabiesChallengeFund.org

cc: Maureen Harper
HB742 Sponsors
House Agriculture & Consumer Affairs Committee

[1] American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Annual Rabies Vaccination Waiver. Retrieved from https://www.avma.org/…/Annual-Rabies-Vaccination-Waiver.aspx

[2] National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV) Brown, C., et al., Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (JAMA) 2016, March 1. Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control, 2016. Retrieved fromhttp://www.nasphv.org/Documents/NASPHVRabiesCompendium.pdf

[3] American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) Canine Vaccination Task Force: Welborn, L.V. et al., 2011 AAHA Canine Vaccination Guidelines p. 21

[4] AAHA 2011 Vaccine Guidelines p. 28

[5] AAHA 2011 Vaccine Guidelines p. 21

[6] AAHA 2011 Vaccine Guidelines p. 29

[7] Zoetis Defensor 1 and Defensor 3 rabies vaccine labels. Retrieved from https://www.zoetisus.com/products/dogs/defensor1.aspx and https://www.zoetisus.com/products/dogs/defensor3.aspx