Answer: In some counties, or parts of some counties where rabies is prevalent, feline vaccination against rabies is required by law. This is the case in north-eastern France and in certain states of the United States ( the regulations for the vaccination of dig and cats in the United States very form state to state, and with in a state between different countries and even towns). In most countries, such as Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark, vaccination is voluntary; i.e. you can have your cat vaccinated if you want to but it is not compulsory. In some countries such as Sweden and Britain, rabies vaccination is prohibited.
In Britain rabies vaccination is only permitted for animals which are genuinely being exported to countries that required rabies vaccination to have been performed in advance, and for animals in quarantine kennels and catteries, largely to avoid the risk of infection being transferred between quarantined animals.
The reason for not allowing general vaccination in Britain is that the public would probably tend to rely upon vaccination fro protection, and therefore would be less likely to comply with the quarantine regulations and would delay in reporting clinical cases. For a voluntary vaccination policy to be effective, a minimum of 70% of the susceptible animals need to be vaccinated.
Experience in European countries with a voluntary vaccination policy shows that usually only around 30% of animals are vaccinated. Finally, vaccination may also interfere with the conformation of the diagnosis of rabies by producing changes in the brain which have similar appearance to those occurring in cases of natural infection.
