I'm sorry to hear some of you have had a hard time with the vaccine. To answer your question, though, my dog has had the vaccine twice, and never showed any kind of adverse reaction. But she weighs 50 lbs. I wonder if the smaller size of your dog might have anything to do with it-- maybe he got too large of a dose? I remember when my dog got the vaccine, it was very important to the technicians to get an accurate weight on her, so they could give her the proper amount of serum-- they specifically explained this to me.

This vaccine can affect different dogs in different ways. PLEASE READ BELOW!!!!!

Here is a story of our dog and the rattlesnake vaccine:
She is a champion showdog will never be shown again. She is also our beloved pet.

We live on a farm in rural SW Nebraska. We walked out the backdoor one morning to find a rattlesnake. It struck and missed my husband and he did away with it. We were on our way to the vet because our other Newfoundland had a UTI. While waiting at the vet we saw a poster on the rattlesnake vaccine made by Red Rocks. I asked the vet what the side effects are. He said the company is saying a slight swelling at the injection site and that is what they were finding in their practice. In light of the snake that morning we decided to have it given to Blossom. That was Friday June 17. Our other Newf did not get it due to her UTI.

Saturday afternoon Blossom was panting more than normal and acted a little tired.

Sunday morning she was panting heavily and more lethargic.

Monday morning she was taken back to the vet . He did a blood test and her PCV was 22. He said she had Auto Immune Hemolytic Anemia (AIHA) and felt it caused by the rattlesnake vaccine. The vet called the company to report the reaction only to be told “we have never had a report of AIHA so it must have been caused by something else.” Our vet still felt it was caused by the vaccine and urged my husband to take her to Colorado to a specialist. I was out of town and we did not know how serious this was. My husband wanted to try treating her in Nebraska. She was put on 80mg Prednisone. Her blood was tested the next day and she was down to 19.

Wednesday we left for Ft. Collins Colorado. When she was tested at VCA her PCV was 12. Her gums were very pale and she was so weak she could hardly stand. She spent four days in ICU undergoing a transfusion, blood thinners (AIHA causes the blood to clump causing strokes), and a chemo drug to lower her white blood count that was out of site. We were then told the rattlesnake vaccine caused the white blood cells to attack her red blood cells killing them and making her anemic.

This was the beginning of our education on AIHA.

The specialist also called Red Rocks and talked to their company vet. He was also informed they had never had a problem with AIHA concerning the vaccine so it must have been caused by something else.

Both our vets replied “there is always a first time”.

We brought a very weak Blossom home with her PCV at 19. She was a zombie. She continued on the 100mg Imuran and the 80 mg of prednisone with weekly blood tests. Her blood count had many ups and downs but did finally reach 33. Her liver enzymes were rising rapidly and with each test were much higher. The specialist in Colorado felt this due to the Imuran and pulled her off. She continued on the prednisone, still a zombie and now losing muscle rapidly. Her head became one third the size. Her belly was enlarged and drooping due to no muscle tone. The liver enzymes continued to escalate.

We repeatedly questioned both vets on the use of prednisone. Both wanted her to stay on it. We felt it was killing her. Her PCV had dropped back to 19 in spite of the Prednisone. We changed vets. We were adamant that she needs to come off and the new vet agreed. It was a gamble but we knew she would die if she stayed on it. He put her back on 100mg Imuran and cut her prednisone in half. Her PCV started rising. She was slowly weaned off the Prednisone. Her PCV was 36 on the last test and she is no longer a zombie. Her liver enzymes are normal. She is now down to 50 mg Imuran every other day and IF things hold she will be off in two weeks. It is now September 30th. and we are out $4500.00 in vet bills and still counting.

Blossom is moderately dysplastic but due to her muscle tone she moved perfectly before all this happened. Now she is showing her dysplasia. We are hoping as she recovers she will again regain the muscles in her hindquarters.

I wrote the Red Rocks company detailing what happened to Blossom after their vaccine. I received an e-mail back from their research vet telling me their vaccine could not possibly have caused this. She said the company had never received any calls from our vets. My husband or I stood right next to our vets while they called and talked to the company vet. The email went on to say it would take 3 months for this to happen after the vaccination. I had researched the time frame and AIHA can occur within 24-72 hours to one month post vaccination but nothing after a month. Three months, Wrong! This time frame was also verified by my vet.
The Red Rocks vet also suggested it must be caused by a genetic defect in my dogs line and to see if her sibling/parents had any problems. Wrong again! They had nothing. I answered her with the above information and then received an e-mail from their attorney.

The attorney assured me Red Rocks was a small company and very concerned about dogs. They were very concerned that our vets were telling us they called when the company had no record of it. They wanted the names of all vets that had ever treated Blossom. They assumed it was University at Ft. Collins we took her to and wanted to know just who we saw there. I gave them the names and phone numbers of both vets that treated her in the acute stage and the ones that called the company. I felt it none of their business who her vets were previously and none of their business who her current vet was. I was also told the company was very concerned about the statements I was making publicly in regards to their vaccine. I replied just try to stop me and posted Blossoms story on every chat group/website I could find.

I have heard nothing from Red Rocks and it has been over a month. The vaccine is not recommended by Ft Collins Vet School or Davis Vet School. Ft Collins has treated dogs that have been bitten after having the vaccine and found the vaccine made no difference in treatment from unvaccinated dogs. On Red Rocks website the FAQ’s page states a dog that has previously been rattlesnake bitten may have the vaccine once the dog has recovered. Ft. Collins is stating a dog that has been bitten could develop a sensitivity and giving the vaccine could produce anaphylaxis shock.

I am now told that a Doberman in this area has died from liver failure after receiving the vaccine.

Another interesting but sad note, is the vet that gave Blossom the vaccine recently told us his Golden Retriever died three hours after receiving the rattlesnake vaccine and another vaccination. He is not sure which vaccination caused the death.

Blossoms story happened several years ago. She did recover and is off all meds now. It was a very long, very expensive heartbreaking battle of ups and downs. She has never fully recovered all her muscle tone and can never have a vaccine of any kind again, even rabies. She can never have heartworm prevention meds either. Once having AIHA she is more prone to getting it again. Any vaccine could now cause it again. She was fully vaccinated before the AIHA with no problems to any vaccine.
She has never been shown again but is happy at home guarding the couch.

I also would like to add that I got an email from a man last night 9/26/2008 about his dog having a reaction to the vaccine. His vet told him "it doesn't look good". This fellow is in his 70's and the dog means everything to him. How may more dogs have to die before the whole truth is told about possible reactions to rhis vaccine.

The vets are only told about a possible swelling at the injection site but they are not informed about the rest of the problems.



I have reported this to every government/vet agency I could find and also to Jean Dodds DVM.

AIHA is a horrible emotional and financial roller coaster.

Thank you for letting me tell Blossoms story.
Sherrie Hall
Chimney Rock Newfoundlands
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UC Davis VMTH– Canine Rattlesnake Vaccine
“The canine rattlesnake vaccine comprises venom components from Crotalus atrox (western diamondback). Although a rattlesnake vaccine may be potentially useful for dogs that frequently encounter rattlesnakes, currently we are unable to recommend this vaccine because of insufficient information regarding the efficacy of the vaccine in dogs. Dogs develop neutralizing antibody titers to C. atrox venom, and may also develop antibody titers to components of other rattlesnake venoms, but research in this area is ongoing. Owners of vaccinated dogs must still seek veterinary care immediately in the event of a bite, because 1) the type of snake is often unknown; 2) antibody titers may be overwhelmed in the face of severe envenomation, and 3) an individual dog may lack sufficient protection depending on its response to the vaccine and the time elapsed since vaccination. According to the manufacturer, to date, rare vaccinated dogs have died following a bite when there were substantial delays (12-24 hours) in seeking treatment. Recommendations for booster vaccination are still under development, but it appears that adequate titers do not persist beyond one year after vaccination. Adverse reactions appear to be low and consistent with those resulting from vaccination with other products available on the market. The product licence is currently conditional as efficacy and potency have not been fully demonstrated. Based on existing evidence, the UC Davis VMTH does not currently recommend routine vaccination of dogs for rattlesnake envenomation, and the vaccine is not stocked by our pharmacy.”

my jack russell terrier had a reaction to her annual shot. she did not react to her puppy shots. the reaction was swelling at the injection site for 2 weeks. she was due to get her rattlesnake vaccine which she had the year before with no reaction. i got her that vaccine and watched the site for 3 days with no reaction. A week later an abcess formed where she got her rattlesnake vaccine. I immediately cleaned the abcess and took her to the vet the following day (of course this happened saturday night and the vet is closed on sunday). She received antibiotics and the wound has healed. Again she has reacted to both vaccines not just the rattlesnake vaccine. I am not sure which rattlesnake vaccine she received but I most likely will not have her get that vaccine again. The rest I will assess the necessity of her receiving them and may just get her the core vaccines with some benadryl before she receives them.