Some cats are receiving vaccines against canine distemper . These cats, however, are big cats - lions. Many lions in Tanzania and Kenya have been dying of canine distemper. Researchers have vaccinated captive lions with canine distemper vaccine to determine if their immune systems respond well to the vaccine and would protect them.
Results show it is safe and effective.
Now researchers only have to find a way to vaccinate the wild lions. In April we reported on using an oral rabies vaccine to vaccinate coyotes and gray foxes in Texas. Raccoons have similarly been vaccinated on the East Coast. Loss of habitat concentrates animals in smaller areas which increases the chance of transmission of disease. Travel of humans and pets can potentially transmit some diseases to populations of animals that have never seen that disease before.