RABIES CHALLENGE FUND

Regards,  Kris L. Christine, Founder, Co-Trustee The Rabies Challenge Fund

PRESS RELEASE!

Two world-renowned giants of veterinary vaccine research -- Dr. W. Jean Dodds of Hemopet and Co-Trustee of The Rabies Challenge Fund and Dr. Ronald Schultz of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine -- have volunteered their time to ensure that critical 5 and 7 year rabies challenge studies are conducted in the United States.  The studies are to be financed by The Rabies Challenge Fund Charitable Trust, a tax-exemption organization founded by pet vaccine disclosure advocate Kris L. Christine of Maine in 2005, and will be performed by Dr. Schultz at the University of Wisconsin.  The University has waived its usual 48% overhead fee for these studies.

The concurrent challenge studies will determine the duration of immunity conveyed by the canine rabies vaccine, with the goal of extending the state-mandated interval for boosters to 5, and then to 7 years.  According to Dr. Dodds, “This is one of the most important projects in veterinary medicine. It will benefit all dogs by providing evidence that protection from rabies vaccination lasts at least 5 years, thereby avoiding unnecessary revaccination with its attendant risk of debilitating adverse reactions. "

Scientific data indicate that vaccinating dogs against rabies every three years, as most states require, is unnecessary. Studies have shown the duration of protective immunity as measured by serum antibody titers against rabies virus to persist for seven years post-vaccination, and results of a 1992 French challenge study led by Michel Aubert demonstrated dogs were immune to rabies five years after vaccination.  Researchers believe the rabies vaccine causes the most and worst adverse reactions in animals and concur that it should not be given more often than is necessary to maintain immunity.  Adverse reactions to rabies vaccination can include autoimmune diseases affecting the thyroid, joints, blood, eyes, skin, kidney, liver, bowel and central nervous system; anaphylactic shock; aggression; seizures; epilepsy; and fibrosarcomas at injection sites.

Dr. Schultz states that “showing that a vaccine for rabies can provide 5 or preferably 7 years of immunity would have great significance not only in controlling rabies but more importantly in reducing the adverse vaccine reactions that can occur in dogs and cats after vaccination."

To date, the following breed clubs, along with many pet owners, trainers, breeders, and kennel owners have contributed to The Rabies Challenge Fund:

GOOD NEWS ON RABIES AND ALL VACCINES

From The Editor: For all who ever doubted they could achieve or change anything, here’s the proof. People like Kris Christine and Jean Townsend “Always for George, Always for the Rimadyl dogs” prove that one person can move a mountain when they create a snowball. Our deepest gratitude to all who work so hard to protect our best friends! This is one of the most important advances in DogCare during the last two decades.  Chris can be contacted at LedgeSpring@lincoln.midcoast.com

The Rabies Challenge Fund

World-renowned vaccine research scientist and practicing veterinary clinician, Dr. W. Jean Dodds of California, and pet vaccine disclosure advocate, Kris L. Christine of Maine, have established The Rabies Challenge Fund to raise money to fund concurrent 5 and 7 year rabies vaccine challenge studies in the United States.

In addition to the challenge studies, the fund will finance a study of the adjuvants used in veterinary rabies vaccines and establish a rabies vaccine adverse reaction reporting system.

Rabies vaccination is the one immunization required by law across the country for domestic dogs and cats, and researchers believe this vaccine causes the most and worst adverse reactions in animals. According to the August 2003 Journal of Veterinary Medicine, a research study by M. Vascellari and colleagues documents cancerous tumors in dogs at the presumed injection sites of rabies vaccinations.

Although pets used to be vaccinated yearly for rabies, the majority of state protocols now require re-vaccination every three years. There are scientific data indicating that vaccinating dogs against rabies every three years is unnecessary. Results of Michel Aubert’s French challenge study published in 1992 demonstrated that dogs were immune to a rabies challenge 5 years after vaccination and the serological studies of Dr. Ronald Schultz (Professor and Chair of the Department of Patho-biological Sciences at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine) have shown that dogs have antibody titer counts at levels known to confer immunity 7 years after vaccination for rabies. The Rabies Challenge Fund has been founded to improve the safety of rabies vaccines and to determine, by challenge, if they confer immunity for 5 or 7 years.

The Rabies Challenge Fund’s first official sponsors are Deb Odom (Florida) and Dawn Turner (Arizona), who have committed to donating a portion of the proceeds from the sale of their pet vaccine informed consent posters and informational flyers.

Donations can be sent to: THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND, c/o Hemopet, 11330 Markon Drive, Garden Grove, CA 92841

Rabies is among the antigenically strongest vaccines, containing potent adjuvants to bolster the immune response. Rabies vaccines are documented to elicit severe and even fatal adverse reactions. According to Dr. Dodds, “giving them more often than truly needed is unwise, unnecessary, and can be unsafe.” She further states, “To date, most states require rabies vaccination every three years, but some states still require annual rabies revaccination, even though the USDA licenses these vaccines for three years”

Dr. Dodds received the D.V.M. degree with honors in 1964 from the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Toronto. In 1965 she joined the New York State Health Department in Albany and began comparative studies of animals with inherited and acquired bleeding diseases. Her position there began as a Research Scientist and culminated as the chief of Laboratory of Hematology at the Wadsworth Center. In 1980 she also became Executive Director of the New York State Council on Human Blood and Transfusion Services. This work continued full-time until 1986 when she moved to Southern California to establish Hemopet, the first non-profit national blood bank program for animals.

“Certainly, veterinarians are aware of the adverse reactions that can occur after rabies and other vaccinations in dogs and cats,” Dodds said. “The public is the body most motivated to address the issues here, because it is some of their beloved companions that have suffered by the existing regulations.”

Other beneficial research to be financed by The Rabies Challenge Fund will be a safety study of adjuvants used to enhance the immune response in veterinary rabies vaccines. Some pet owners, like Kris Christine, believe the adjuvants may cause more adverse reactions than the actual vaccine -- her own dog developed a malignant mast cell tumor at the site of a rabies shot. “Unlike human vaccines where all adjuvants are required to be the same, there is no such standardization in veterinary medicine,” Christine said. “Hopefully, this study can be completed before the five and seven years of the parallel challenge studies, to make vaccines safer for our precious canine companions.”

Kerry Blue Foundation Donates $5,000 to Rabies Challenge Fund

The Kerry Blue Terrier Foundation (http://www.kerryblues.info) has generously donated $5,000 to The Rabies Challenge Fund, which was established to raise money to finance concurrent 5 and 7 year rabies vaccine challenge studies in the United States. It is spearheaded by world-renowned vaccine research scientist and practicing veterinary clinician, Dr. W. Jean Dodds of California, and pet vaccine disclosure advocate, Kris L. Christine of Maine. The Kerry Blue donation was announced by the Foundation’s President, John Van den Bergh.

“As an educational organization, we are happy to be able to fund a study that will finally shed some light on vaccination research,” says Van den Bergh. He believes that by supporting The Rabies Challenge study, “We will have the ammunition to talk to legislators to bring the law in line with science.”

TheDogPlace.org has made a pledge for ongoing support and we hope you will too!

Pet Vaccine Lawsuit

It's official -- the law firm of the Chicago law firm of Childress Duffy Goldblatt, Ltd. petvaccine@childresslaw.net  312-494-0200 -- attorneys Roy R. Brandys and John Sawin -- have posted an announcement on their website about the NATIONAL pet vaccine class action lawsuit that their firm is undertaking at: www.childresslaw.net/CM/Custom/Custom52.asp 

"arising from the misrepresentation of the need for vaccinations for your pets."

Anyone wishing to have a copy of either the 1992 French challenge study data from a research team led by Michel Aubert in which dogs were demonstrated to be immune to a rabies challenge 5 years after vaccination, or Vascellari's study which documented cancerous tumors in dogs at presumed injection sites of rabies vaccine, please e-mail me. Kris Christine LedgeSpring@lincoln.midcoast.com

Editor’s Note: Please, go to the Rabies Challenge Fund website and DONATE NOW!!! TheDogPlace.org has worked with Kris for many years as she has single-handedly raised awareness, testified before state and local veterinary associations and lawmakers, and succeeded in getting some of the most highly respected vets and veterinary universities on board. Go to the site, the official backers and endorsement of the veterinary community will amaze you.

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