Took in Adandon Kitty, What Have I DONE???

[Charles]

I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6 weeks
after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site. Further
research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma caused by
the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help
but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to reassure
us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how many
other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there have
experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one morning
I will wake up and the lump will be gone.

[Magic Mood Jeep©]

I too had a similar problem. After Weeble's (see my webshots photo albums,
he was abandoned by his Mama at less than a week old) second set of
vaccinations, he developed a lump at the shot site, but it took about a week
to develop! Vet was concerned, but puzzled as he'd not had such
developments before, but in the past month, after switching vaccine brands,
was having a rash of them. The first few he biopsied, and they turned out
negative, just an inflammatory reaction to the vaccine. So we kept a close
eye on him: he got 'felt up' by the vet once a week for 4 weeks, and it
seemed to get smaller, so vet said to only call/bring him in if the lump did
anything besides shrink, and to bring him in for his neuter on the scheduled
time - and by the time his neuter came, lump was almost gone, and two weeks
after that, the lump was completely gone - now I can't even tell exactly
where it was!.

--
The ONE and ONLY
lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy former-blonde
in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep


"Charles" > wrote in message
...
> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
weeks
> after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
Further
> research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma caused
by
> the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help
> but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to reassure
> us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how many
> other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there have
> experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
morning
> I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
>
>

[Charles]

You must have been SO relieved. I am hoping for the same outcome. I am
really concerned that the vaccination was done on Nov 14 and it should have
gone down by now. That was almost 8 weeks ago. All I can do now is pray
and hope it goes away.
"Magic Mood Jeep©" > wrote in message
news:pilLb.954$5V2.563@attbi_s53...
> I too had a similar problem. After Weeble's (see my webshots photo
albums,
> he was abandoned by his Mama at less than a week old) second set of
> vaccinations, he developed a lump at the shot site, but it took about a
week
> to develop! Vet was concerned, but puzzled as he'd not had such
> developments before, but in the past month, after switching vaccine
brands,
> was having a rash of them. The first few he biopsied, and they turned out
> negative, just an inflammatory reaction to the vaccine. So we kept a
close
> eye on him: he got 'felt up' by the vet once a week for 4 weeks, and it
> seemed to get smaller, so vet said to only call/bring him in if the lump
did
> anything besides shrink, and to bring him in for his neuter on the
scheduled
> time - and by the time his neuter came, lump was almost gone, and two
weeks
> after that, the lump was completely gone - now I can't even tell exactly
> where it was!.
>
> --
> The ONE and ONLY
> lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy
former-blonde
> in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
> http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
> http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep
>
>
> "Charles" > wrote in message
> ...
> > I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> > old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> > scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> > declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
> weeks
> > after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
> Further
> > research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma
caused
> by
> > the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> > aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> > should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> > have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't
help
> > but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> > can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> > such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to
reassure
> > us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how
many
> > other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there
have
> > experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
> morning
> > I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
> >
> >
>
>

[Rona Yuthasastrakosol]

"Charles" > wrote in message
...
<snip>
>I am just praying that one morning
> I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
>
>

FWIW, I also found a lump on my cat a few weeks after she had been
vaccinated. I took her back to the vet and he said it wasn't an unusual
occurrence, but that I should watch it just in case. It took a few more
weeks, but the lump did disappear and has not reappeared since (I still
check for lumps every so often, just in case). And as a human, I get
vaccine-related lumps, too :-)! (I bruise and scar easily.)

From what I read, 1 in 5000 cats are affected--seems like a lot but as a
percentage, it's .0002%. And, from
http://littlezoo.com/data/vet/Commonly%20Treated%20Malignancies%20of%20the%20Cat .htm
"VAS may develop from 3 months to 3 years after vaccination" so 6 weeks is a
bit early for the sarcoma to have developed (if you believe the site
quoted). I think you were wise to bring her in to the vet, and you should
keep your eye on the lump, but you don't need to worry for now. She has a
very good chance of *not* getting a vaccine-related sarcoma.

Good luck, and let us know how she's doing!

rona
--
***For e-mail, replace .com with .ca Sorry for the inconvenience!***

[Gail]

YOu did the best thing for her. I think the lump will be OK. The fact that
the needle aspiration came back negative is a good thing.
Gail
"Charles" > wrote in message
...
> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
weeks
> after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
Further
> research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma caused
by
> the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help
> but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to reassure
> us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how many
> other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there have
> experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
morning
> I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
>
>

[~*Connie*~]

I had a foster kitten that reacted to the vaccine too. After a few weeks it
went away.. cancer can develop with vaccines, but its usually not that fast.
"Charles" > wrote in message
...
> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
weeks
> after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
Further
> research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma caused
by
> the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help
> but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to reassure
> us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how many
> other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there have
> experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
morning
> I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
>
>

[Hans Schrøder]

"Rona Yuthasastrakosol" > wrote in message
...
>
> From what I read, 1 in 5000 cats are affected--seems like a lot but as a
> percentage, it's .0002%.

More like .02%, I guess... If we start with the fact that 1 in 50 is 2%,
then 1 in 500 is 0.2% and...?

Hans

[Rona Yuthasastrakosol]

"Hans Schrøder" > wrote in message
...
>
> More like .02%, I guess... If we start with the fact that 1 in 50 is 2%,
> then 1 in 500 is 0.2% and...?
>
> Hans
>
>

Oops! I meant to adjust the decimal point but forgot! But staying on
topic, .02% is still a relatively low risk...

Thanks for the correction!

rona

--
***For e-mail, replace .com with .ca Sorry for the inconvenience!***

[Karen]

in article , Charles at
wrote on 1/8/04 5:11 PM:

> You must have been SO relieved. I am hoping for the same outcome. I am
> really concerned that the vaccination was done on Nov 14 and it should have
> gone down by now. That was almost 8 weeks ago. All I can do now is pray
> and hope it goes away.

My Grant and Sugar both got bumps at their vaccination sites when they first
got them that lasted about 3 months. Vet never mentioned the possibility of
sarcomas and said it was just "a reaction". The lumps *did* go away. I took
them to a new vet who upon hearing they had such a long lasting reaction
wrote it in their charts and they only get purevax shots now and have had NO
swelling since then. Here's hoping that is all it is for you, but be warned
it may take a bit longer to go down. If the biopsy was negative, most likely
is. Get purevax shots next time. More expensive but worth it. You *did* do a
good thing taking kitty in.

Karen

[Dennis Carr]

On Thu, 08 Jan 2004 16:46:13 -0600, Charles wrote:

> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
> weeks after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.

And you took her to the vet. Good call, and with this, you did the Right
thing.

> Further
> research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma
> caused by the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect.

Here's a question - where is the research that says this is a
*significant* risk? Odds are that your vet not only felt that this was of
no risk, but that because a rabies shot may be so routine

First and foremost, I'll go on record as saying I hope this gets better.
Second, keep in mind that I'm not anywhere near a doctor of any sort.

Now then, something I learned is that most sub-independent research (IE,
"this is what happened to me") is something to be taken with a grain -
nay, about a truckload - of salt. It is always the people who have
something bad happen to them who yell the loudest, and when something goes
right, the only time you'll hear of it is if it's authoritative research
beyond what the news gives you. (Besides, the news gives you
pseudoscientific results of initial findings - such as that having a beer
would melt your liver, and next year beer would strengthen your heart, or
something equally ridiculous.)

With that said, keep in mind that, as it is in humans, there is a risk
when you do something - ANYTHING - invasive to a feline, from full blown
open heart surgery to something as simple as a vaccination injection,
however minute the risk is. There are steps to prevent really nasty
things from happening, but every now and again something does happen, and
there are almost always ways to treat this.

In any case, heed your vet's word before you heed what's online - they are
the one who has the training to know where there are problems.

We had a needle
> aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> have a tough choice coming up.

If the biopsy came back negative, like others have said, there's probably
no worry.

> I am very upset about this and can't help but wonder if I wouldn't have
> been better off leaving kitty a feral.

Well, kitty has grown fond of you, yesno? =^^=

The storm will ride out. Prayers and purrs for you and kitty, I'm sure
this isn't painless.

--
Dennis Carr - | I may be out of my mind,
http://www.dennis.furtopia.org | But I have more fun that way.
------------------------------------+-------------------------------

[Cathy Friedmann]

Considering the needle aspiration biopsy was negative, I wouldn't be
overly-worried. I personally know of one cat who died of a vaccine (FeLV -
cat was indoor/outdoor, so needed the vaccine) site-induced cancerous tumor
on her shoulder a few years ago, when the cat was 7. It was inoperable,
because of the location. Now a rear leg is used for FeLV vax, *if* the cat
needs it, so that an amputation can be performed in the unlikely event of a
carcinoma forming as a result of the shot.

So, I agree to keep a watch on it, but to try to relax in the meantime.
Adopting her was, IMO, a wiser thing to do than to leave her to her own
devices outside. One can't ever second-guess such a situation - the "what
ifs" - the adverse things that *may* happen, Vs. what is -likely- to be the
overall better situation. And you chose the likely-to-be-better deals:
adopting her & getting her rabies shot taken care of. Which it may very
well still turn out to be.

Cathy

--
"Staccato signals of constant information..."
("The Boy in the Bubble") Paul Simon
"Charles" > wrote in message
...
> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
weeks
> after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
Further
> research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma caused
by
> the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help
> but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to reassure
> us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how many
> other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there have
> experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
morning
> I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
>
>

[Betsy]

Could you please find out from the vet what brand caused that reaction? I'd
be grateful.

"Magic Mood Jeep©" > wrote in message
news:pilLb.954$5V2.563@attbi_s53...
> I too had a similar problem. After Weeble's (see my webshots photo
albums,
> he was abandoned by his Mama at less than a week old) second set of
> vaccinations, he developed a lump at the shot site, but it took about a
week
> to develop! Vet was concerned, but puzzled as he'd not had such
> developments before, but in the past month, after switching vaccine
brands,
> was having a rash of them. The first few he biopsied, and they turned out
> negative, just an inflammatory reaction to the vaccine. So we kept a
close
> eye on him: he got 'felt up' by the vet once a week for 4 weeks, and it
> seemed to get smaller, so vet said to only call/bring him in if the lump
did
> anything besides shrink, and to bring him in for his neuter on the
scheduled
> time - and by the time his neuter came, lump was almost gone, and two
weeks
> after that, the lump was completely gone - now I can't even tell exactly
> where it was!.
>
> --
> The ONE and ONLY
> lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy
former-blonde
> in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
> http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
> http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep
>
>
> "Charles" > wrote in message
> ...
> > I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7 months
> > old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> > scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> > declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
> weeks
> > after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
> Further
> > research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma
caused
> by
> > the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a needle
> > aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we still
> > should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may
> > have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't
help
> > but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> > can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause her
> > such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to
reassure
> > us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how
many
> > other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there
have
> > experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
> morning
> > I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
> >
> >
>
>

[Victor Martinez]

I too hope the bump is just some kind of allergic reaction to the shot.
In the future, you might want to discuss with your vet the vaccination
guidelines recommended by the AAFP:
http://www.aafponline.org/about_guidlines.htm
Since we keep our cats indoors only, many vaccines are not necessary.
Others don't need to be given every year, only every 3 years. Talk to
your vet about this.

--
Victor Martinez
Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM)
Send your spam here:
Email me here:

[Magic Mood Jeep©]

I know that they now went back to the other vaccine, Purevax, that they had
stopped using because it was temporarily unavailable, but I don't know what
they were using in it's place.

--
The ONE and ONLY
lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy former-blonde
in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep


"Betsy" -0> wrote in message
...
> Could you please find out from the vet what brand caused that reaction?
I'd
> be grateful.
>
> "Magic Mood Jeep©" > wrote in message
> news:pilLb.954$5V2.563@attbi_s53...
> > I too had a similar problem. After Weeble's (see my webshots photo
> albums,
> > he was abandoned by his Mama at less than a week old) second set of
> > vaccinations, he developed a lump at the shot site, but it took about a
> week
> > to develop! Vet was concerned, but puzzled as he'd not had such
> > developments before, but in the past month, after switching vaccine
> brands,
> > was having a rash of them. The first few he biopsied, and they turned
out
> > negative, just an inflammatory reaction to the vaccine. So we kept a
> close
> > eye on him: he got 'felt up' by the vet once a week for 4 weeks, and it
> > seemed to get smaller, so vet said to only call/bring him in if the lump
> did
> > anything besides shrink, and to bring him in for his neuter on the
> scheduled
> > time - and by the time his neuter came, lump was almost gone, and two
> weeks
> > after that, the lump was completely gone - now I can't even tell exactly
> > where it was!.
> >
> > --
> > The ONE and ONLY
> > lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy
> former-blonde
> > in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
> > http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
> > http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep
> >
> >
> > "Charles" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7
months
> > > old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> > > scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> > > declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
> > weeks
> > > after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
> > Further
> > > research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma
> caused
> > by
> > > the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a
needle
> > > aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we
still
> > > should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and
may
> > > have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't
> help
> > > but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral.
I
> > > can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause
her
> > > such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to
> reassure
> > > us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how
> many
> > > other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there
> have
> > > experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
> > morning
> > > I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

[Charles]

I am not a statistics major, but when I mentioned this problem to my sister
and friends, I found out that one of my sister's cats had sarcoma and a
friends aunt had the same thing. So much for the 1 in 3,000 number that
gets this reaction. I think this goes largely unreported. Our kitten is
still very active and shows absolutely no signs of being sick. The biopsy
that was done was the needle aspirator type and I guess this type of biopsy
is not real reliable for catching cancer cells. At least it gave us
temporary peace of mind.
"Karen" > wrote in message
.. .
> in article , Charles at
> wrote on 1/8/04 5:11 PM:
>
> > You must have been SO relieved. I am hoping for the same outcome. I am
> > really concerned that the vaccination was done on Nov 14 and it should
have
> > gone down by now. That was almost 8 weeks ago. All I can do now is
pray
> > and hope it goes away.
>
> My Grant and Sugar both got bumps at their vaccination sites when they
first
> got them that lasted about 3 months. Vet never mentioned the possibility
of
> sarcomas and said it was just "a reaction". The lumps *did* go away. I
took
> them to a new vet who upon hearing they had such a long lasting reaction
> wrote it in their charts and they only get purevax shots now and have had
NO
> swelling since then. Here's hoping that is all it is for you, but be
warned
> it may take a bit longer to go down. If the biopsy was negative, most
likely
> is. Get purevax shots next time. More expensive but worth it. You *did* do
a
> good thing taking kitty in.
>
> Karen
>

[Charles]

She was given Fort Dodge???
"Laura R." > wrote in message
.. .
> In article >,
> says...
> > they only get purevax shots
> >
> I cannot recommend this highly enough. Purevax (Merial) vaccines are
> adjuvant-free, which means that they do not contain the substances that
> are suspected to be responsible for vaccination-site sarcomas. Ask your
> vet if s/he uses Purevax. If s/he doesn't, either find another vet or
> tell your current one that you won't vaccinate unless and until s/he
> makes adjuvant-free vaccinations available.
>
> Laura

[Linda E]

We recently had a scare after one of our cats developed a vaccination site
lump almost 3 years (!) after her last vacc at that particular site. Vet
was very concerned and really thought the outcome was going to be bad. When
the vet "went in" for a biopsy, a round ball of fat popped out.... got it
analyzed and that's what it turned out to be - fat! We dodged the bullet
that time......

Linda

[Linda E]

"Rona Yuthasastrakosol" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Charles" > wrote in message
> ...
> <snip>
> >I am just praying that one morning
> > I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
> >
> >
>
> FWIW, I also found a lump on my cat a few weeks after she had been
> vaccinated. I took her back to the vet and he said it wasn't an unusual
> occurrence, but that I should watch it just in case. It took a few more
> weeks, but the lump did disappear and has not reappeared since (I still
> check for lumps every so often, just in case). And as a human, I get
> vaccine-related lumps, too :-)! (I bruise and scar easily.)
>

My vet always tells me there's a chance of a "lump" or "swelling" at the
vaccine site... I don't think she's referring to a sarcoma though at that
point, but a "reaction." (or so I assume)
Linda

[stocksRus]

"Charles" > wrote in
:

> I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7
> months old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing
> several scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT
> have her declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her
> spayed. Now 6 weeks after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her
> vaccination site. Further research suggests that this could very
> likely be cancerous sarcoma caused by the vaccine. The vet NEVER
> mentioned this side effect. We had a needle aspirator (sp) biopsy
> which was negative, but even the vet said we still should be
> concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and may have a
> tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't help but
> wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral. I
> can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause
> her such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to
> reassure us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am
> AMAZED at how many other cat owners have gone through this same thing.
> Any one out there have experience with post vaccination lumps. I am
> just praying that one morning I will wake up and the lump will be
> gone.

Just went throught the same thing...1 in 10,000 cats are affected by the
vaccine. I wouldnt worry too much now. I freaked out and my vet assured me
he was OK and within 8 weeks it, the lump was gone

[Charles]

It was a Fort Dodge vaccine. The kitty still has the lump on her and it has
not shrunk, but is hasn't gotten any bigger either. It feels as if it is
harder than it was before, but at least it is not growing. Kitty sure
doesn't act sick and is as playful as ever.
I guess I wait another 2 weeks and then we go to the vet to have it removed
and analyzed. I wonder if I should give it more time. From reading some of
the posts, it sounds like it could take a few months for a vaccine reaction
to go away. I would hate to put kitty through surgery if it is not
necessary. Then again, if it is Sarcoma, it would be best to remove the
lump as soon as possible and pray they remove it all.

"Betsy" -0> wrote in message
...
> Could you please find out from the vet what brand caused that reaction?
I'd
> be grateful.
>
> "Magic Mood Jeep©" > wrote in message
> news:pilLb.954$5V2.563@attbi_s53...
> > I too had a similar problem. After Weeble's (see my webshots photo
> albums,
> > he was abandoned by his Mama at less than a week old) second set of
> > vaccinations, he developed a lump at the shot site, but it took about a
> week
> > to develop! Vet was concerned, but puzzled as he'd not had such
> > developments before, but in the past month, after switching vaccine
> brands,
> > was having a rash of them. The first few he biopsied, and they turned
out
> > negative, just an inflammatory reaction to the vaccine. So we kept a
> close
> > eye on him: he got 'felt up' by the vet once a week for 4 weeks, and it
> > seemed to get smaller, so vet said to only call/bring him in if the lump
> did
> > anything besides shrink, and to bring him in for his neuter on the
> scheduled
> > time - and by the time his neuter came, lump was almost gone, and two
> weeks
> > after that, the lump was completely gone - now I can't even tell exactly
> > where it was!.
> >
> > --
> > The ONE and ONLY
> > lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy
> former-blonde
> > in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)©
> > http://www.geocities.com/the_magic_mood_jeep/
> > http://community.webshots.com/user/mgcmdjeep
> >
> >
> > "Charles" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > I took in an abandoned kitty approx 4 months ago. She is now 6-7
months
> > > old. I was what I thought to be a wonderful owner, purchasing several
> > > scratching posts, giving kitty the run of the house. Did NOT have her
> > > declawed, got her rabies and distemper vaccine, had her spayed. Now 6
> > weeks
> > > after her rabies vaccine, there is a lump at her vaccination site.
> > Further
> > > research suggests that this could very likely be cancerous sarcoma
> caused
> > by
> > > the vaccine. The vet NEVER mentioned this side effect. We had a
needle
> > > aspirator (sp) biopsy which was negative, but even the vet said we
still
> > > should be concerned. We are going to watch the lump for changes and
may
> > > have a tough choice coming up. I am very upset about this and can't
> help
> > > but wonder if I wouldn't have been better off leaving kitty a feral.
I
> > > can't believe that my own actions of having her vaccinated may cause
her
> > > such pain. We have grown so attached to kitty. The vet tried to
> reassure
> > > us that it is unlikely that this is cancerous, but I am AMAZED at how
> many
> > > other cat owners have gone through this same thing. Any one out there
> have
> > > experience with post vaccination lumps. I am just praying that one
> > morning
> > > I will wake up and the lump will be gone.
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>

[Karen Chuplis]

in article , Charles at
wrote on 1/12/04 10:35 AM:

> It was a Fort Dodge vaccine. The kitty still has the lump on her and it has
> not shrunk, but is hasn't gotten any bigger either. It feels as if it is
> harder than it was before, but at least it is not growing. Kitty sure
> doesn't act sick and is as playful as ever.
> I guess I wait another 2 weeks and then we go to the vet to have it removed
> and analyzed. I wonder if I should give it more time. From reading some of
> the posts, it sounds like it could take a few months for a vaccine reaction
> to go away. I would hate to put kitty through surgery if it is not
> necessary. Then again, if it is Sarcoma, it would be best to remove the
> lump as soon as possible and pray they remove it all.

A biopsy will not be very invasive and will provide you with peace of mind.

Karen