Titre testing is an alternative way to assess your dog’s immunity and can help us avoid unnecessary vaccinations while still ensuring your pet remains protected. Vaccinations remain extremely important for maintaining good community immunity and reducing the spread of infectious diseases. However, research has shown that immunity to parvo and distemper can often last longer than three years in many dogs.

By offering titre testing, we can better tailor your dog’s healthcare to their individual needs.

A titre test measures the level of protective antibodies against specific diseases — in this case, parvovirus and distemper — in your dog’s blood.

Antibodies are proteins produced by the immune system after vaccination or natural exposure to disease. If adequate antibody levels are present, this indicates your dog has protection against those diseases.

If you choose to have a titre test performed, we will collect a small blood sample from your dog. The test is run in clinic and results are usually available within 5–10 minutes.

The test measures antibody levels for parvo and distemper. If antibody levels are below the protective threshold, we will recommend vaccination to help ensure your dog is protected.
How reliable is titre testing?

The test we use has excellent accuracy. It has a sensitivity of 99.9% for both parvovirus and distemper, meaning dogs that test positive are highly likely to have protective immunity.

The test also has very good specificity — 94% for parvovirus and 99.8% for distemper. This means that most dogs testing negative genuinely have low immunity, although a small number may still have some protection despite a negative result. For this reason, dogs with negative results are recommended for vaccination.

Titre testing may be suitable for:

• Puppies or dogs in for desexing or their first-year vaccine check-up, whichever comes first
• Adult dogs up to 10 years old as an alternative to routine vaccination
• Senior dogs over 10 years old, where yearly titre testing may be appropriate
• Dogs that have previously experienced a vaccine reaction
• Newly adopted dogs with an unknown vaccination history

If adequate immunity is demonstrated, repeat titre testing or vaccination is generally recommended every three years.

Titre testing may not be appropriate for:

• Dogs that are currently unwell — we recommend waiting until they are healthy and stable
• Dogs with chronic illness or compromised immune systems due to disease or medications

In these cases, we may recommend vaccination or, if vaccination is not preferred, sending a blood sample to an external laboratory for more detailed testing.

Please note that kennel cough and leptospirosis vaccinations still require annual boosters, as these vaccines provide a shorter duration of immunity.

If your dog attends boarding kennels, daycare, or grooming facilities, it is important for you to check their vaccination requirements, as not all facilities accept titre testing in place of vaccination.