Titer Tests For Rabies?

The Washington Standard / January 23, 2025

Disclaimer: This is for educational and informational purposes only. If you have any questions regarding vaccinations and immunity against disease regarding your pets, please see your Whitecoat veterinarian or your holistic, naturopathic veterinarian.

Readers at The Sons of Liberty Media are aware of the problem of over-vaccination of pets, which can cause chronic disease, illness and even death, covered in the five-part series “Vaccinating Your Pets: What You Should Know” and the Sons of Liberty Radio Live morning show, “You Know ‘Vaccines’ Are Dangerous To Man – What About Your Pets”. If you have not read the series or watched the show, please do so since that information will be pertinent to understanding this piece. Rabies is being highlighted exclusively because it is the only animal vaccination required by law. It is with regard to rabies that titer testing is being highlighted to help pet parents avoid over-vaccination. This is part I of a two-part series.

Once you have made the decision to follow the recommendation of Dr. Ronald Schultz on vaccinating your pets, you can be certain you will face “resistance” from the veterinary medicine community and can run afoul of local animal control and public health should your pet be involved in a biting incident. Be sure and become familiar with the Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control, 2016, which details how animals are to be handled regarding overdue rabies vaccines. Here is a key take-away from the Compendium:

Regardless of rabies vaccination status, a healthy dog, cat, or ferret that potentially exposes a person through a bite should be confined and observed daily for 10 days from the time of the exposure. – Part I, B, 6.

Whether that confinement and observation is done in the home of the pet or specified facility is subject to State and/or local regulations.

All sources used will be provided at the end for your reference as well as some tips to help pet parents navigate authorities when necessary regarding their furry family members who were vaccinated appropriately or who are unhealthy and should not receive further vaccinations.

Keep in mind, this information is based on three factors: viruses exist; viruses cause illness; illness from viruses can be prevented through vaccination.

There has been much discussion on using titers to determine whether your furry family member is considered immunized against rabies after following the vaccination recommendations by Dr. Ronald Schultz. While this will give you as a pet parent peace of mind, there is not a State that currently accepts titer tests as a substitute for rabies vaccination. And, there are only eighteen States that currently allow medical exemptions for pet vaccinations. Titer testing can assist in establishing proof of immunity to authorities after you have initially vaccinated your furry family members per the recommendations of Dr. Ronald Schultz – one rabies vaccine at 4 months of age, then a booster within 12 months, usually at one year of age. It now becomes important to understand titer testing in order to use the information properly to keep from harming your furry family member and your pocketbook.

Most individuals understand titer testing as a measuring of antibodies against an organism in the blood stream. This is the same for our fur babies as it is for humans. This article will only be addressing titers for rabies, but titers can be obtained for all the “core” vaccines (there are only three). Other vaccines, such as leptospirosis, are difficult to evaluate using a titer test, but leptospirosis vaccine is not considered a “core vaccine”. An appropriate understanding of the immune system, in simple terms, is meaningful here to help understand timing of titer testing.

God created humans and animals with a wonderful immune system that functions to identify what is “self” and what is “foreign”. It is complex, consists of diverse parts, and involves many organs, such as the spleen, lymph nodes, tonsils, liver, thymus, bone marrow. The microbiome in the gut also plays a significant role in the immune system. Moreover, there is an entire host of white blood cells with creative names, such as “natural killer” (NK) cells, T-helper cells, and macrophages that help protect us and our furry family members from foreign invaders.

Immunologists usually separate immunity into two different components: Humoral immunity and Cell-Mediated immunity. Humoral immunity is the component of immunity involving antibodies that engulf invasive “organisms” to make them inactive or increasingly susceptible to attack by immune cells. The antibodies originate from B-lymphocytes and carried through the blood on these same cells. Antibodies are what a titer test will measure.

Cell Mediated immunity relies on a variety of cells, such as T-lymphocytes, macrophages, and NK cells, that work in directly killing virally infected cells or cancer cells, but also in communicating with other aspects of the immune system. This component of the immune system can be studied and activation of NK cells can be measured. However, this is quite expensive for the average individual to have done for their furry family member.

When faced with a foreign invader, the immune system uses all the components to act together in and organized concert of overlap and communication between cells, antibodies and other chemicals to mount a holistic response. This response is well balanced and is what helps keep us and our furry family members healthy and free from foreign invaders, cancer cells, or self attack.

Another important part of the immune system are the memory cells that originate from B-cells. Many readers will be aware of these. These cells hold the “memory of a previously encountered” foreign invader whether from natural exposure or exposure from a vaccine. These memory cells are long-lived and possess specific memory about the foreign invaders they encountered. So, if after several years of any type of exposure to a foreign invader that invader is encountered again, these memory cells convert rapidly to plasma cells, secreting antibodies against the recognized foreign invader. This is measured as a “rising titer”. Rising titers are mostly used to diagnose distemper.

This article is only addressing titers where rabies vaccines are concerned, but titers can be obtained for all the core vaccines.

Based on what is known about the immune system, titer testing is only measuring one component of that immune system – antibody response against a particular organism. The presence of antibodies indicates protection. However, the immune system has no reason to keep developing antibodies against a foreign invader forever. Over time, the antibody levels may wane. Once the fight is finished, there is no more invader so no more need for antibodies. But, the titer test does not measure any cell-mediated immune response. Remember those memory cells originating from B-cells that are long-lived? They remain quietly in the background waiting on the signal the foreign invader is back. It is the memory cells that are responsible for the duration of immunity that cannot be measured by a titer test.

While those of us pet parents are thrilled about titer testing to “prove immunity” and cease over-vaccinating our furry family members, titer testing is not a “get out of vaccination free” card. Improperly timed vaccines can result in no immunity. Improperly timed titer testing can produce inaccurate results, which could lead to over-vaccination.

It has already been indicated when your furry family member should be vaccinated based on the work of Dr. Ronald Schultz – first round of rabies and core vaccines at 4 months, then a second round of rabies and core vaccines at 12 months. Vaccinating before your furry family member is 16 weeks old may not produce immunity because the antibodies from the mother received through colostrum and milk are still active and interfere with the development of immune responses to vaccines. This would be improperly timed vaccines.

After vaccinating your furry family member, a titer test can be performed to establish if he has developed an immune response. However, the titer test must be administered at the proper time. It takes time for the body to mount an immune response that is measurable by a titer test after vaccine. Typically, the timeframe is around 30 days. Titer testing before 30 days may produce an inaccurate result indicating an immune response is not being measured. This would be improperly timed titer testing. So, for initial titer testing on your furry family member receiving the first and second rounds of vaccines, it is best to wait at least 30 days post the last vaccine dose.

For pet parents with “adult” furry family members that have received vaccines as adults, titer testing can be done to determine if he has previously mounted an immune response. Let’s drill down further using this writer’s furry family member as an example. She was adopted at 6 months old from the no kill Humane Society. The vet for the Humane Society administered the core vaccines and rabies due to the previous parent not having immunization records. For the next 5 years, she received core vaccines and rabies at her annual vet visit. She developed a chronic illness (gastroenteritis, colitis – vet never definitively diagnosed nor identified cause) in 2022. Previously, she had developed skin allergies (diagnosed by the vet) as evidenced by scratching and paw licking. After much research, it was determined her chronic illness and allergies could have been caused by over-vaccination. At that point, in 2024, the decision was made to cease vaccinations.

Based on the history of this furry family member, a titer test can be done at any point to determine immunity to the diseases she has been vaccinated against. Why? She received all her vaccinations after 4 month of age and as an adult. This means her body would have developed an immune response against the diseases for which she was vaccinated.

It would be prudent to mention here the importance of titer testing a furry family member you adopt, regardless of age, to determine what vaccines are necessary at that time. It is a long-standing practice for vets contracting with a shelter, including no kill Humane Society, to vaccinate any animal received with a questionable vaccine history or no vaccine history. By waiting the appropriate time to titer test, you can avoid over-vaccination for your adopted furry family member.

Immunity developed from vaccination does not expire on day 364. There is not an empty reservoir that needs to be replenished. We know vaccines given to humans are not repeated yearly. It has long been accepted by medical professionals and scientists that vaccines given produce lifetime immunity. Moreover, it is also accepted by medical professionals and scientists that being infected with an illness produces lifetime immunity, e.g. chicken pox, measles, mumps, etc. It is the same for our furry family members. Remember, God created our furry family members with the same wondrous immune system as He provided us. This indicates repeating vaccines is unnecessary and provides no additional benefit, but does increase the risk for adverse events and vaccinosis – vaccine injury in pets.

As a pet parent, you have now followed all the requirements of vaccination for your furry family member, either as an adult dog or a young puppy per the recommendations of Dr. Ronald Schultz. Now, you decide to titer test 30 days or more after the last dose. How does the titer test indicate immunity?

Titer tests are testing the blood for an immune response to vaccination. There are two types of titer testing – quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative titer tests are sent to a laboratory for evaluation and results take several days to be returned. Qualitative titer tests are performed in the vet’s office as a point-of-care test producing results in about 25 minutes. The results return as “yes” for positive or “no” for negative.

Quantitative titer testing from the laboratory returns results in a ratio form, e.g. 1:400. But, this number is not as important as long as the titer comes back positive, indicating your furry family member has produced antibodies to the vaccine. It’s simple to remember it this way – there is immunity or there isn’t. It matters not which titer testing, quantitative or qualitative, is used. A qualitative test indicating a positive result correlate well with a quantitative test.

So, your furry family member’s titer test has come back negative. Does that mean he has no immunity? Not necessarily. It shouldn’t be assumed that a furry family member who has had vaccines as an adult and receives a negative titer test is not protected against the diseases for which he has been vaccinated against. Why? Remember those memory cells of the immune system referenced earlier? Antibody levels circulating in the blood decrease over time in the absence of exposure. But, those memory cells are sitting quietly in the background ready to mount an immune response should the foreign invader be detected.

What about your puppy that receives a negative titer test? Remember, vaccines must be timed properly so the mother’s immunity from colostrum and mother’s milk does not interfere with the immune response from the vaccine. Moreover, the titer test must be timed properly since it takes a while for the young furry family member to mount an immune response.

Always remember, it is only advisable to vaccinate healthy furry family members. Any furry family member that has a chronic illness, has a history of reactions against vaccines, or is receiving immunosuppressant therapy should not be vaccinated for anything. The vaccine vials from the pharmaceutical companies indicate this and all veterinarians know this.

When going this route on vaccination and titer testing for your furry family member, you may receive some “hostility” from vets and be labeled an “anti-vaxxer”. However, educating yourself about vaccinations and titer testing for your furry family members makes one a “wise-vaxxer” as one source indicated. Moreover, you can research on how to help better strengthen you furry family member’s immune system. In Part II of this series, measures you can take to help navigate authorities, skeptics, and others will be covered.

All references used have been provided for your convenience to aid in conducting your own independent research.

Sources:

https://vitalanimal.com/titer-testing-mistakes/

https://vitalanimal.com/rabies-short-course/

https://vitalanimal.com/dog-bite-rabies/

https://breedingbusiness.com/titer-testing-for-dogs/

https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/titers-avoiding-over-vaccination-in-dogs/

https://www.barkandwhiskers.com/vaccine-titer-testing/

https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/titer-testing-dog/

https://www.nasphv.org/Documents/NASPHVRabiesCompendium.pdf

https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/hcp/veterinarians/index.html

https://rabiesaware.org/rabies-titer-testing