REASONS WHY YOU HAVE VACCINES FAILURE
Vaccination is an integral part of livestock production, particularly poultry farming. Although it is not a perfect solution to disease prevention.
It is one of the important first steps taken towards the prevention of diseases, and having a healthy flock.
Livestock vaccination helps in reducing the economic losses in poultry production. Proper transport, storage, and handling of vaccines are pivotal to the overall success in the usage of vaccines as a disease prevention mechanism.
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| Reasons of Vaccine failure in animals |
Good Storage System
When buying vaccines for your livestock ensure that it is properly stored in a good refrigerator.
Never buy your vaccines from suppliers with consistent power outages or poor power supply. This is to ensure the efficacy of the vaccines.
The majority of live vaccines require proper storage between 2°C and 8°C. It is a good practice to keep vaccines of the same type together to avoid using the wrong vaccine by mistake.
BEST WAY TO TRANSPORT VACCINES
It is only appropriate to buy vaccines at least a few minutes to when you are about to use it. In most cases, this might not be attainable due to some unavoidable factors such as:
Availability of the vaccines within the locality of the farm
Long-distance between the farm and the supplier
Poor power supply and absence of a good refrigerator
The best way to transport live vaccines is through an insulated cooler box or bag. It is a good practice to pre-chill the box or bag before the vaccine is placed inside.
As the ice packs come out of the freezer they need to be wrapped in a cloth, paper, or bubble wrap to prevent the vaccine from coming into direct contact with the frozen ice packs, protecting the vaccine from freezing.
On receipt of the vaccine on the farm, first, check the temperature. This should be in the range between +2° C and +8° C. This will ensure that the potency has been retained.
Also record the type of vaccine, number of doses, and expiry dates. Should the vaccines arrive warm or damaged, call the manufacturer or distributor to report the problem and follow their advice.
HOW TO HANDLE VACCINES CORRECTLY
Ensure that you have the right quantity (liters) of water as recommended by the manufacturers. The vaccine should be removed from the fridge no longer than 30 minutes prior to it being used. After mixing vaccines should be administered immediately, only mix enough vaccines for immediate use.
Use clean vessels, free of any residues from sanitizers or disinfectants, and only clean, designated equipment for vaccine mixing should be used.
It is important to protect the vaccine from UV light, heat, chlorine, and organic matter (including dust, litter, or feed). The name of the vaccine, batch number, expiry date, and date of the administration needs to be recorded in your farm medicines book. Only trained staff should be allowed to handle and mix the vaccines.
HOW TO AVOID VACCINES FAILURE
Administering the wrong dose is expected of you before using any vaccines you read and follow all label instructions i.e 100, 200, 500, and 1000 doses, etc.
Endeavor to administer the booster dose i.e Many vaccines require a booster 2-3 weeks after the initial dose. Be sure to read the label properly.
If you can’t do it properly ensure the services of a professional, to assist you in administering the vaccine injection at the right site on the animal i.e some vaccines are supposed to go in the muscle; some are supposed to go under the skin. Again read the label instructions and follow them.
Do not give vaccines to animals that are emaciated, thin, sick, or animals under stress such animals may end up dying or fail to develop the desired response to vaccines.
Ensure that your vaccines are stored at the appropriate temperature. Ensure that your refrigerator is properly working, and it maintains a constant temperature of 35-45 oF
Properly discard unused vaccines.
Be sure to use vaccines before the expiration date. Expired vaccines may become ineffective causing the animal to fail to develop immunity.
Ensure that you are using the right vaccines for the right disease.
HOW TO HAVE GOOD RESULTS FROM YOUR VACCINES
The storage temperature for the vaccines recommended by the manufacturer should be maintained up till the time of administering the vaccines.
The manufacturers’ instructions on the route and dosage should be strictly followed.
Ensure that all animals are vaccinated.
It is beneficial to deworm the animals 2-3 weeks before vaccination is carried out for a better immune response.
Vaccination should be carried out at least a month prior to the likely occurrence of the disease.
Avoid administering vaccines during periods of extreme weather. i.e when the weather is hot.
Vaccination should not be done when the animals are in a stress period particularly a few days before or after the debeaking, transfer shifting, and grading because negative Immuno-modulation occurs in these conditions, which ends with a low level of active immunity.
It is recommended to use the PVC or Plastic containers when administering vaccines to avoid any chemical reaction with metal containers.
Avoid using bottled water as diluents.
Only use sterile diluents for reconstitution of injectable vaccines only use diluents recommended by the manufacturer of the vaccines.
The vaccines should be used as soon as possible they are reconstituted.