Eravac vaccine

Angie B said:

Right, wish me luck!

Coco and Thumper had their RHDV2 vaccines this morning. They had Filavac last year and whereas Coco was fine with it, Thumper was really quite poorly after a few hours but luckily pulled through (no vet needed although we were on the verge of taking her to the emergency vet). So this year I was a bit :? but thought that she'd be okay given it was already in her system.

However, when I got there, our vet said that they were no longer giving Filavac due to the side effects. She did explain that Filavac was a live vaccine and so evidently it seems that poor Thumper had succumbed to it and had in fact suffered a mild episode of RHD, which I was unaware of at the time last year.

This year though Eravac is not a live vaccine and so according to the sheet which comes with the vaccine, the only recorded side effect is an increase in temperature, so if they start panting it's damp ears and paws but that should be it and they should be fine. They live outside and it's cool/cold which should also help.

So, hopefully they will be fine. Given Thumps was so poorly last year I'm a bit worried of course, but Elenor has assured me that they haven't had any really bad side effects with Eravac, unlike Filavac, which is positive and reassuring. Still worried though!

Apparently, they can have an increase in temperature for up to 5 days after inoculation. A bit like when we had our TB/polio stuff I suppose, as they were live vaccines when we had them, years and years ago (they don't give live polio anymore I don't think).

Anyone here had any problems with Eravac? Just to reassure me it's okay?! :lol:

Click to expand...

Santa said:

It's still only available in multi-dose vials, not least because at present it is only meant to be used for meat rabbits and therefore single dose vials are pretty pointless. It seems that vets are still using the cascade to access filavac and personally this is my preferred option. Previously, the SIC was on the basis that no licenced product exists in the UK, and this is no longer true as eravac is licenced for RHD2. However, a SIC can still be granted using the cascade rules if in the vet's opinion the licenced product is not suitable for the use for which it is needed, and plenty of vets do seem to still be using this.

I'm sure I've said it before but for ease it's probably easier to repeat myself here: eravac does not have a duration of immunity associated with it, hence its use only for meat rabbits - who will only need one vaccination before they are slaughtered for meat. So for pet rabbits it means that we have no idea when we need to have a booster, because that hasn't been established. Also, in one of their two trials, it did not prevent RHD2 infection, it only reduced it. One of the trials gave 100% protection but the other gave 93% (compared to a control group at something like 50% mortality, I can't remember the exact figures off the top of my head), so its data sheet says it is to 'reduce mortality' from RHD2 whereas filavac trials showed 100% protection and therefore their data sheet says it is to 'prevent mortality'. Subtle but very important difference! When added to the single dose vials and the fact that eravac is mineral oil based (thus giving risk of operator injury if self-injected and injection site wounds), it's a no-brainer to me to encourage my vet to still use filavac.

After an initial hiccup when eravac was first licenced, it doesn't seem to have impacted the wholesale supply chain of filavac either, so hopefully we can still get this with relative ease, and hopefully now the issue has gained traction there will be other options available in the UK in the not too distant future!

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Jane.

At least Eravac is licensed. Where we live we only need to have the annual jab so a booster in 6 months isn't required anyway as the disease isn't that prolific here - only 1 case last year and that was 20 miles away at least; it is literally just a precaution.

I'm going to check on the girls when I have my lunch and then every couple of hours. Hopefully if there's no change come supper time (9pm) then there won't be any at all. Plus, the temperature outside will drop overnight anyway which will help if they start to get a little warm themselves. The vet has assured me they won't erm, die from being too hot from the vaccine, so that's something!

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Jane.

At least Eravac is licensed. Where we live we only need to have the annual jab so a booster in 6 months isn't required anyway as the disease isn't that prolific here - only 1 case last year and that was 20 miles away at least; it is literally just a precaution.

I'm going to check on the girls when I have my lunch and then every couple of hours. Hopefully if there's no change come supper time (9pm) then there won't be any at all. Plus, the temperature outside will drop overnight anyway which will help if they start to get a little warm themselves. The vet has assured me they won't erm, die from being too hot from the vaccine, so that's something!

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Jane.

At least Eravac is licensed. Where we live we only need to have the annual jab so a booster in 6 months isn't required anyway as the disease isn't that prolific here - only 1 case last year and that was 20 miles away at least; it is literally just a precaution.

I'm going to check on the girls when I have my lunch and then every couple of hours. Hopefully if there's no change come supper time (9pm) then there won't be any at all. Plus, the temperature outside will drop overnight anyway which will help if they start to get a little warm themselves. The vet has assured me they won't erm, die from being too hot from the vaccine, so that's something!

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, everyone.

No side effects thus far :thumb:, though having read the link Jane put up I think the temperature can take a day or so to show anyway, but so far they're fine.

I would imagine that as time progresses they'll do research to see how long the immunity is for Eravac, but I can't see it being much different to Filavac, I don't see why it would be even though it was initially used for meat rabbits. We'll see.

As I say though, I can't see my vet returning to Filavac though if they've had reports of side effects (including me), versus none for Eravac - it's not worth the risk. And I wouldn't want to put Thumper through that again anyway, she was really poorly and as she's getting older, next time it could finish her off and is it worth it for a vaccine? I'd never forgive myself.

I had a look at the discussion, MM, but to be honest at quite a few pages long I was a bit reluctant to read them all just to get to a few salient points, so I haven't, sorry, but thank you all the same .

I can only trust my vet, which is what we can all only do I guess, and hope for the best x

Click to expand...

Santa said:

Glad everything has been ok so far, hopefully there won't be any side effects from the eravac Filavac isn't a live vaccine though - it's inactivated, exactly the same as eravac... but they are two completely different vaccines so it's probably a sensible thing to swap, given that there's an alternative. It's hard to know what to make of reports of many side effects from one vets, as most I've spoken to, and owners with multiple rabbits (sometimes in the hundreds) don't seem to be having problems - but I guess the vet is being sensible at exploring alternatives if they feel they have noted an issue with it. The current recommendation seems to be for a 6 monthly booster with eravac and I guess this may be updated on the data sheet (and maybe even extended at some point).

Eravac I think comes into its own for breeders/rescues with babies, as it can be given from 30 days, whereas filavac is licensed from 10 weeks old.

Everything crossed that your little ones carry on as completely normal after their jabs and that you don't see any of the problems you did last year x

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Santa for the info . On their vaccination card our vet has put they won't need a booster until next January, so we'll just go with that for now - fingers and paws crossed I guess that nothing untoward happens in the meanwhile! I expect if any new info comes out re a booster in 6 months that overly concerns the vet, they'll call me in.

And thank you Jane - and everyone - for the best wishes.

Yes, both girls appear to be in "fine fettle" this morning, though Thumper is still wary of me and when the wind blew the shed door shut, effectively trapping her in the shed with me, she cowed down in the hay . As soon as I opened the door again and wedged it with the watering can, she shot outside :lol:. She'll be okay in a day or so when she realises I'm not going to shove her in the carrier again. I managed to have a quick feel of their ears/fuzzy spots and they didn't seem overly warm so with luck so far, so good :thumb:. They both came flying over like little furry Exocet missiles from different parts of the garden for their treats when I shook the box anyway :lol:.

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Santa for the info . On their vaccination card our vet has put they won't need a booster until next January, so we'll just go with that for now - fingers and paws crossed I guess that nothing untoward happens in the meanwhile! I expect if any new info comes out re a booster in 6 months that overly concerns the vet, they'll call me in.

And thank you Jane - and everyone - for the best wishes.

Yes, both girls appear to be in "fine fettle" this morning, though Thumper is still wary of me and when the wind blew the shed door shut, effectively trapping her in the shed with me, she cowed down in the hay . As soon as I opened the door again and wedged it with the watering can, she shot outside :lol:. She'll be okay in a day or so when she realises I'm not going to shove her in the carrier again. I managed to have a quick feel of their ears/fuzzy spots and they didn't seem overly warm so with luck so far, so good :thumb:. They both came flying over like little furry Exocet missiles from different parts of the garden for their treats when I shook the box anyway :lol:.

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

Thank you, Santa for the info . On their vaccination card our vet has put they won't need a booster until next January, so we'll just go with that for now - fingers and paws crossed I guess that nothing untoward happens in the meanwhile! I expect if any new info comes out re a booster in 6 months that overly concerns the vet, they'll call me in.

Click to expand...

Angie B said:

I will mention it to them the next time I go in, Santa, thank you .

Thank you everyone, the girls are fine with no side effects, no hot ears, no panting, nothing, so that's great! And Thumper actually didn't side swipe me this morning either, accepting her morning pellets out of my hand as normal before running off to bounce around the garden, as normal. So all is forgiven as well, yaay!

Click to expand...