We once had a dog that was mentally retarded. Completely, totally untrainable. Unfortunately not compatible with a household with small children and unadoptable, so dog had an end at the vet’s office. No idea what caused the problem, but it was sad.
Prominent antivaxers have been encouraging pet owners not to get their animals vaccinated for some time now.
One-time feminist Naomi Wolf recently posted this on Twitter:
“They’re after your pets! Now I’ve read holistic vet news sites warning about how dangerous annual vaccines are for dogs. Also, why annual if vaccines ‘work’? But I can’t get Loki groomed without renewing. Any holistic groomers out there in NY/Bklyn? DM me please if so.”
Wolf also claimed to have seen pets appear as if they’re losing consciousness when held in the arms of recently vaccinated owners. The shedding, you know. 
Another virulent antivaxer, Steve Kirsch, proudly recounted how his new cat would not be vaccinated. He also, when questioned as to whether he would get vaccinated against rabies if exposed to a rabid dog, hedged by saying he’d have to look at the vaccine’s safety data first.
These people are unhinged.
I should be ashamed to wish that these antivax for rabies people should all get bitten by a rabid dog. But I’m not, except for feeling sorry for the dogs.
My cats have always been strictly indoor, but I make sure they get their rabies vaccinations on schedule.
Aren’t rabies vaccinations required by law? I suppose it may differ by state. They are required by law where I live (although I’d definitely do it even if not legally required).
Yes, required in Massachusetts, and yes, I’d do it anyway.
Required by law and 100% compliance are two different things.
There would be no rabies in domesticated pets if everyone vax’ed.
@Broomstick …I don’t like the term mentally retarded. Yes there are pets who are developmentally handicapped, unstable, neurotic.
My little rescued Yorkie(literally 5 minutes from euthanasia), was handicapped. She couldn’t or wouldn’t suckle. Mom rejected her. At 5 days old I talked the vet she was brought to for euthanasia to let me try to bottle feed her. He didn’t want to do it, The breeder was against it. I promised to spay her and if she was suffering to bring her back in. And they gave in.
She lived 1O happy years with me. Weighed about 4 lbs. Stayed mostly in my hoodie pocket.
I hand fed her every meal. She couldn’t masticate for some reason. The only thing she was trained to do was potty on her little pad on the deck.
I agree there are untrainable and unsafe dogs. But they are not retarded. Just handicapped. Probably because of human error.
ETA: no dog ever loved me like that little dog did. She was worth saving and taking care of. My sweet little Gracie. I miss her.
I suspect most of these anti-vax assholes care more about their wallet and if their un-vax’ed dog/cat bites someone they are now financially liable and may have to write some big checks.
Maybe that is the way to get them to vaccinate their pets. $100 for vet visit or $100,000 if their pet bites someone.
This seems like it should really be a Pit thread, since everyone seems to agree that these people suck.
Factual question: is the rabies vaccine actually 100% effective? Can we be sure that any case of rabies in a pet must indicate a negligent owner?
I asked this once and the veterinarian I asked had a special interest in virology. According to her, there has never been a case of rabies in the US in a dog that had received two vaccines in its life (that is a vaccine at 12 weeks and another a year later). Cats are a different kettle of fish, since there are feral populations and barn cats.
She also predicted that we would see an end to terrestrial rabies (bats are a different story) since the Wistar Institute came out with a rabies vaccine bait that can be dropped from planes.
It seems it is 100% reliable in humans. In dogs and cats it can vary a little but is still extremely reliable.
Vaccinating dogs is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people, and human rabies vaccines exist for pre-exposure immunization. - SOURCE
https://www.who.int/health-topics/rabies/rabies-is-100-percent-vaccine-preventable#tab=tab_1
tl;dr The rabies vaccination is extremely reliable and worth doing as a means to prevent the disease.
People have forgotten what diseases are really like because of vaccines. Similar problem with environmental protection.
These idiots are like the bipolar guy I know who decides he’ll be fine without his meds… then his life falls apart.
Too bad the consequences of their ignorant stupidity can’t be confined to the idiots.
I’m sorry you don’t like the term. That is the actual diagnosis made by the vet who examined the dog. Granted this was decades ago when the term carried different weight but I’d prefer not to second-guess a medical professional.
The dog wasn’t “unstable” or “neurotic” - he was completely uneducable. Never got past the mental state of slightly past newborn puppy. Completely incontinent. Did not seem to recognize anyone or anything. Would bark, whine, and howl nearly continually. Could not find his own food or water bowl. Crawled more than he walked. Human error? Most likely birth defect. Almost certainly some form of severe brain damage.
My mother tried for months to take care of the dog in hopes it would get better. He never did. This was not an animal to be given anything but a humane end.
My dog hyper-fixates on walkies and chasing the ball. Does he have vaccine autism?
What a sad dog. Sorry that happened to you guys.
I said human error meaning dogs who are left un-neutered. Running free.
Not the fault of the animal.
Not the fault of your Mom trying to care for the dog.
It acts like a cat.
The thing is, it’s not about someone disliking a term. It’s about recognizing an outmoded term that’s no longer used by medical professionals, including veterinarians, :
Yes, dogs can have mental disorders, but the term “mental retardation” is not commonly used in veterinary medicine to describe these conditions. Instead, veterinarians and experts refer to various mental disorders that can affect dogs.
You wouldn’t be second-guessing a medical professional by avoiding use of a term that medical professionals no longer use due to its inaccuracy and general offensiveness.
I’m sorry about that childhood dog, Kudos to your mom for trying so hard with him.
I do think that’s part of it.
When I was growing up, we pretty much took vaccinations for granted (though I’ve later learned that there were some bits of resistance.) Our parents, and older sibs, had all lived through polio epidemics. (Those my age had too, but too young to remember.)
Cats can’t have autism, because what would be autism in a dog or human is neurotypical for cats.
Most people in my mom’s generation knew someone who lost a child to measles. A lot of them remember the funerals.
Re autism, here’s how the YouGov survey item, that 37 percent of dog owners agreed with, was worded:
So the survey suggested the idea, and the idea was broader than autism. Still, 37 percent is a lot.
Why the phrase “canine/feline” was included in a dog survey, I do not know.
I’m concerned about enforcement of the law, although when we last boarded our dog, we were told that the state sometimes visits and checks. I hope this is true.
There also could be a cost issue. It used to be fairly common for shelters to give rabies vaccines for free at their clinic, but maybe this is not so true anymore 
The study can be downloaded from this link: