General Information - Cebu Veterinary Doctors

The Vaccination Certificate

The certificate of vaccination (sometimes called a vaccination card) is one of the most important documents of your pet. This contains information about your pet and all the vaccines that has been given to him. Sometimes this document may also contain important records of other preventive health programs such as the de-worming history and anti-tick and flea medications.

It is important that the vaccination certificate is always valid and updated. Here are some reasons for this:

You will always bring your pet's vaccination certificate every time you take him to the veterinary clinic. The vet may need the certificate to rule out certain diseases or give recommendations for your pet basing on what has already been given to him;

You need to bring the vaccination certificate along when you travel your pet to other cities and provinces. If you want to take your pet to other islands, you will need to secure a shipping permit for your pet from the Veterinary Quarantine and Services Department of the Bureau of Animal Industry. They will check for your pet's updated rabies shots prior to the issuance of the permit. It would be wise to have the rabies shots updated and in effect before the scheduled travel;

If your pet has bitten a person you may also need to show your pet's rabies vaccination certificate to the victim's physician. The physician may need it to determine the course of action and the type of shots that the patient may need;

For a vaccination entry to be valid, it must contain the following:

Date that the vaccine was given;
Manufacturer of the vaccine used;
Lot or batch number and expiry date of the vaccine;
Veterinarian's signature above printed name;
Veterinarian's PRC ID number;
Veterinarian's PTR and TIN numbers.

These data will tell us:

if the vaccination entry is current;
that the vaccine given came from a legitimate manufacturer and is not expired;
that the person who administered the vaccine is a licensed, practicing Veterinarian;
that since the vaccine was administered by a Veterinarian, it was given properly and in accordance to label instructions;
that since the vaccine was administered by a Veterinarian, we can assume that the Veterinarian has examined and found out that the pet is healthy at the time of the vaccination.

The Rabies shot is probably the most important entry in the vaccination certificate. Aside from being a requirement in the Philippines, it also serves as a guarantee that the pet is free of this deadly zoonotic (transmissible to man) disease. Therefore, this entry should always be valid and updated.

Veterinary Health Certificate

The following are the requirements in acquiring a veterinary health certificate at the Cebu Veterinary Doctors:

1) Updated and valid Rabies Vaccination Certificate.

A valid Rabies vaccination certificate includes the vaccine's manufacturer with lot number and the Veterinarian’s signature, PRC, PTR, and TIN Nos. The Rabies shot should be given not less than two (2) weeks but not more than one (1) year prior to issuance of the veterinary health certificate. Rabies vaccination certificate is not required, however, in Puppies and Kittens below three (3) months of age.

2) Physical exam.

The attending veterinarian will conduct a routine physical examination to assess the condition of your pet.

3) Routine Laboratory exam.

The routine laboratory exam is done in order for us to check for certain infectious and contagious diseases. This may include a stool exam, an ear mites check, and microfilaria check. The presence of parasites and infectious agents will require an initial treatment and/or a recommendation for a treatment regimen prior to issuance of the veterinary health certificate.

4) Payment of Fees and Charges.

The Veterinary Health Certificate shall be issued upon full payment of charges from corresponding professional fees, medicines, routine and additional laboratory tests, and such as required by the attending veterinarian for the issuance of the veterinary health certificate. Two original copies of the Veterinary Health Certificate and one original copy of the test results shall be issued to the owner.

Cebu Veterinary Doctors